Carbon and Climate

The carbon cycle moves carbon between the atmosphere, oceans, living organisms, and rocks. Plants absorb CO2 through photosynthesis; animals release it through respiration.

Burning coal, oil, and gas releases carbon that was locked underground for hundreds of millions of years, adding it back to the atmosphere as CO2 faster than natural systems can absorb it. The result is the greenhouse effect — CO2 traps heat radiation from Earth's surface, warming the planet.