This introduction covers Carbon's Endless Journey within Carbon Cycle for GCSE Biology. Topic 3: Carbon Cycle It is section 1 of 11 in this topic. Use this introduction to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
📖 Carbon's Endless Journey
The carbon atoms in your body right now might once have been in a dinosaur, a medieval tree, or floating in the atmosphere! Carbon constantly cycles between the air, living things, and the ground. It's never created or destroyed — just endlessly recycled. Understanding this cycle helps us understand climate change!
Practice questions for Carbon Cycle
Which process removes CO₂ from the atmosphere?
Explain how decomposers return carbon to the atmosphere.
Quick recall flashcards
What does the carbon cycle do?
The carbon cycle continuously moves carbon between the atmosphere (as CO₂), living organisms, the soil, and fossil fuels.
Carbon is never created or destroyed — it is recycled.
How does decomposition return carbon to the atmosphere?
Decomposers (bacteria and fungi) break down dead organisms.
They respire, releasing CO₂ back into the atmosphere.
Without decomposers, carbon would be locked in dead material forever.