2.5.16

Carbon Dioxide in the Atmosphere

Test yourself

The Decrease in Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide

At least 3 factors caused atmospheric carbon dioxide to decrease:

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Oceans

  • The formation of oceans removed large amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
  • Once dissolved in the oceans, some of this carbon dioxide reacted with seawater to give carbonate precipitates.
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Photosynthesis

  • Carbon dioxide is one of the reactants of the equation for photosynthesis.
  • So, the photosynthetic action of algae and plants removed carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
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Marine animals

  • The evolution of marine animals removed carbonates from the oceans as the animals used these to build their shells and skeletons.

Jump to other topics

1Biology

1.1Cells, Tissues & Organs

1.2Reproduction & Variation

1.3Ecological Relationships & Classification

1.4Digestion & Nutrition

1.5Plants & Photosynthesis

1.6Biological Systems & Processes

2Chemistry

2.1Particles

2.2Chemical Reactions

2.3Atoms, Elements, Compounds

2.4The Periodic Table

2.5Materials & the Earth

2.6Reactivity

2.7Energetics

2.8Properties of Materials

3Physics

3.1Energy

3.2Forces & Motion

3.3Waves

3.4Electricity & Magnetism

3.5Matter

3.6Space Physics

4Thinking Scientifically

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