The term 'biosphere'. Structure of the biosphere

This article will acquaint you with the concept of "biosphere", it will tell you about the structure of the biosphere.

The term "biosphere" literally translates as "sphere of life". For the first time it was introduced into science by the Austrian scientist Edward Suess in 1875. Biologist JB Lamarck later stressed that all the elements that make up the bark on the surface of the globe were formed due to the activity of living organisms. Modern interpretation of the concept of "biosphere" implies a unique shell of the Earth, in which there are all living organisms and continuously interacting with them fragments of the substance of the planet. Its formation began approximately 3.8 billion years ago, during the birth of the first organisms on Earth. The biosphere and its structure are one of the elements of the hierarchical structure of nature. The composition of this shell includes the upper part of the lithosphere, the entire hydrosphere and the lower segment of the atmosphere.

The structure of the biosphere assumes the presence of:

• A living substance made up of living organisms inhabiting our planet.
• Biogenic substance created in the process of functioning of organisms, which is the result of processing and creation by organisms (atmospheric gases, oil, peat, coal, limestone, etc.). Since the birth of the first living organisms, they have missed thousands of times through their organs, cells, blood, tissues the entire world ocean, a considerable part of the atmosphere, a considerable amount of mineral substances.
• A biogenic substance formed without the assistance of living organisms.
• Biocos material, which is the result of interaction of non-biological processes and vital activity of living organisms, being dynamically equilibrium complexes of one and the other (mud, soil, weathering crust, etc.). In them the leading position is occupied by organisms.
• A substance that is in a state of radioactive decay.
• Scattered atoms, constantly arising from any terrestrial substance, as a result of the effects of cosmic radiation.
• Substances of an unearthly, cosmic nature.

Separately, we need to describe in more detail the first point of such a concept as the structure of the biosphere. A living substance is a complex of bodies of living organisms. Its mass is small, in comparison with the rest of the structure it is only 2.4-3.6 x 1012 tons of dry weight. This is one millionth part of the mass of the biosphere as a whole, which in turn is less than one-thousandth of the mass of the planet. Despite such insignificance in weight, it is very significant as the geochemical force of the Earth, because organisms not only conduct their life activity in this shell, but also affect the transformation of the shape of the planet, which is inhabited completely unevenly. Less often they are found in the depths of the lithosphere and lithosphere, at a considerable height, and often inhabit the soil, on the surface of the Earth and the upper layers of the hydrosphere. The area of their distribution is largely determined by geographical latitude.

The structure of the biosphere, according to VI. Vernadsky, who first created the doctrine of the biosphere, has three components: the aerobiosphere, the hydrobiosphere and the geobiosphere.

In the aerobiosphere live organisms, for the life of which the main element is the moisture of the air. Drops of water in the air and aerosol components rising from the ground serve as necessary energy sources for the life of microorganisms in this sub-sphere. In turn, it is divided (conditionally) into sub-sub-spaces - the altobiosphere and the troposphere.

Hydrobiosphere is the entire water part of the planet, which is inhabited by hydrobionts. At the same time, the hydrobiosphere contains a marine biosphere (oceanic and marine waters) and an aquabiosphere (continental fresh water).

In the geobiosphere, the geobionts live, for which the earth's solid is the optimal medium.

Humanity every year more and more influences the biosphere and interacts with it, causing irreversible changes. The environment of this process was called "noosphere". The biosphere and noosphere were deeply studied by academicians: Vernadsky, Lysenko, Professor Lepeshinsky and many other outstanding minds of Russia and abroad.