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Biogeochemical cycle
Introduction References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
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Colorful autumn leaves cover the forest floor and a large mossy rock among tall trees with yellow and orange foliage. Diagram of the carbon cycle showing how carbon moves between the atmosphere, biosphere, land, and ocean. Arrows connect processes like combustion, plant and animal respiration, decomposition, fossil fuel formation, and ocean absorption, with labeled pathways for carbon flow. Diagram illustrating the nitrogen cycle, showing how nitrogen moves between the atmosphere, biosphere, and soil through natural processes like nitrogen fixation, assimilation, ammonification, nitrification, and denitrification, as well as through human activities such as fertilizer use and industrial emissions. Blue arrows indicate natural activities, and red arrows indicate human activities. Diagram of the water cycle showing processes like evaporation, condensation, precipitation, transpiration, infiltration, and groundwater flow between land, vegetation, surface water, and the ocean, with labeled arrows and color-coded soil moisture and groundwater zones. Illustrated diagram of the phosphorus cycle showing phosphate movement from rocks through soil, water, plants, animals, and decomposers, including mining, erosion, runoff, uptake by plants and aquatic organisms, and marine sedimentation. Diagram illustrating the sulfur cycle, showing how sulfur moves through the biosphere and atmosphere. Arrows trace sulfur emissions from fossil fuel burning and decomposition, deposition from the air, plant uptake, runoff into water, and sediment formation. Diagram illustrating the oxygen cycle, showing how atmospheric oxygen and carbon dioxide move between the atmosphere, plants, animals, water, and soil through processes like photosynthesis, respiration, combustion, and precipitation. Blue arrows represent the water cycle, while red and black arrows trace oxygen and carbon dioxide exchanges in the environment. Figure 1: A schematic representation of the biogeochemical cycle of carbon. Diagram showing energy flow and nutrient cycling in the biosphere, with sunlight powering producers like plants and algae, which feed consumers. Arrows illustrate nutrient movement through detritus, microbes, soil, water, sediments, and the atmosphere, including fossil fuel formation and weathering.

Biogeochemical cycle: References & Edit History

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  • The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
    Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.

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Article History

Type Description Contributor Date
Article title updated for style. Nov 12, 2026
Modified link of Web site: ACS Publications - Artificial Photosynthesis - Ecochemistry for Biogeochemical Cycles: Learning from Nature, Serving for Nature. Sep 17, 2026
Add new Web site: Khan Academy - Biogeochemical cycles overview. Jul 21, 2026
Add new Web site: Cell Press - Trends in Microbiology - Cyanobacteria and biogeochemical cycles through Earth history. May 15, 2026
Add new Web site: World Climate Research Programme - Biogeochemical Cycles and Climate Change (PDF). Sep 25, 2025
Add new Web site: National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - Biogeochemical Cycles in Plant–Soil Systems: Significance for Agriculture, Interconnections, and Anthropogenic Disruptions. Jun 20, 2025
Add new Web site: Frontiers - Frontiers in Microbiology - Microbial regulation of global biogeochemical cycles. Jan 16, 2025
Add new Web site: ACS Publications - Artificial Photosynthesis - Ecochemistry for Biogeochemical Cycles: Learning from Nature, Serving for Nature. Oct 22, 2024
Add new Web site: PNAS - Balance and imbalance in biogeochemical cycles reflect the operation of closed, exchange, and open sets. Sep 14, 2024
Add new Web site: Nature - A broken biogeochemical cycle. Feb 16, 2024
Add new Web site: Maricopa Open Digital Press - Biogeochemical Cycles. Oct 18, 2023
Add new Web site: OpenStax - Concepts of Biology - Biogeochemical Cycles. Aug 10, 2023
Add new Web site: Open Oregon Educational Resources - Biogeochemical Cycles. Jun 19, 2023
Add new Web site: Khan Academy - Intro to biogeochemical cycles. Apr 04, 2023
Add new Web site: Biology LibreTexts - Biogeochemical Cycles. Oct 06, 2022
Added a photograph of rotting leaves in a forest. Jun 01, 2020
Add new Web site: UCAR - Center for Science Education - Biogeochemical Cycles. Jun 16, 2016
Add new Web site: The Environmental Literary Council - Biogeochemical Cycles. Jun 16, 2016
Text clarifying terms and simplifying the language of the article added. Apr 01, 2015
Added diagram of phosphorus cycle. Apr 01, 2010
Line art depicting the carbon cycle added. Jan 21, 2009
Article added to new online database. Jul 20, 1998
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