Plant response to increased carbon dioxide from burning. What will the trees and plants do with the carbon dioxide produced by the smokestack if we turn the lights back on? (Hint: What process takes place in the plants when the lights are on?) Lets take a few more readings from the carbon dioxide analyzer to find out.
Just like before, photosynthesis caused the concentration to go down from 367.1 to 345.3 ppm.

So what does all this mean globally? Why doesn't the carbon dioxide concentration in our atmosphere drastically change every time the sun sets? Why is the atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration at the level it is now? Well, it's because respiration and photosynthesis form a dynamic balance. Plants and animals are respiring at the same time other plants are photosynthesizing. This produces a sort of balance. It's a dynamic balance because the atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have constantly changed throughout history and will fluctuate into the future. This is because sometimes there are more animals respiring, or humans burning fossil fuels, than there are plants photosynthesizing and sometimes there are more plants photosynthesizing than there are animals respiring. Currently, the burning of fossil fuels is increasing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the air. This can be seen in the Mauno Loa graph. Here is an interesting question to think about--- where did the fossil fuels come from in the first place?

Photosynthesis and Respiration Experiment page        1 2 3 4 5