Biogeochemistry is the study of the biological, geological, and chemical processes that occur in nature, and biogeochemical dynamics are the complex interactions between these processes including how the interactions change over time. In particular, biogeochemistry examines the factors that influence cycles of key elements such as carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorous and the impacts of the elements as they flow through the reservoirs in the Earth system—the atmosphere, hydrosphere (water and ice), biosphere (life), and lithosphere (rock).

The Carbon Cycle

The carbon cycle involves the storage and fluxes of carbon, in its many phases, throughout the Earth system. Carbon dioxide (CO2) represents the primary atmospheric phase of carbon. Carbon can move from the atmosphere to the terrestrial biosphere through photosynthesis, where it is stored in living biomass (plants and animals) and in dead matter (litter and soils). Carbon can cycle back into the atmosphere through respiration or through the burning of materials that contain carbon. As a greenhouse gas, CO2 in the atmosphere absorbs heat and contributes to the regulation of Earth's temperature.

NASA archives many datasets related to the carbon cycle in terrestrial ecosystems. Scientists use these data to study the long- and short-term trends of the carbon cycle and how changes to the carbon cycle affect the Earth system.