Importance of the Biosphere

Although we do not perceive it with the naked eye, we live in a kind of bubble, the biosphere. In other words, the biosphere is the layer that is home to all forms of life on Earth. In this way, without it, the life of any organism would not be possible.

Regarding its location, it ranges from the deepest areas of the oceans to the air layers of the atmosphere at about 10,000 meters of altitude. Therefore, the biosphere includes a part of water, a part of land and a part of air.

The relationships of living beings and their natural environment

The set of ecosystems that make up life on the planet constitute a larger set that we call the biosphere. In this sense, all organisms influence the environment and modify it and, in turn, said environment determines the life of the species. In this way, the relationships that occur in the biosphere are in a process of permanent change.

Somehow, we can understand the biosphere as if it were a living being, with its own state and evolution. This idea has been called

hypothesis gaia and comes to say that the totality of what exists is an entity with its own life.

Being a living organism, the biosphere produces a constant creation and destruction of matter and energy. At the same time, it is a large mechanism that regulates itself.

The idea of ​​the biosphere provides a global framework for all scientific disciplines dealing with life on Earth.

Biology in its different branches, ecology or geology are areas of science that focus on some dimension of life. For each of them to make sense, it is necessary to understand all living reality as a superior entity. In this line, some scientists consider that the human being should reconsider its relationship with the whole of the nature.

The nitrogen cycle in the biosphere

All living organisms need an essential element for life, nitrogen. The air contains 78% nitrogen and for plants and animals to absorb nitrogen it is necessary that this gas is previously transformed into nitrates. Thus, animals obtain nitrogen by feeding on plants or other animals that eat plants.

On the other hand, the sun's rays heat the air and this causes the combination of nitrogen and oxygen, that is, nitrogen oxides. These oxides dissolve in rainwater and leach into the soil to form nitrates. These nitrates are finally absorbed by the plants and constitute the food base of the animals.

Images: Fotolia. Kushnirov Avraham – Vadim_petrakov