Biogeochemical Feedbacks

FEEDBACKS ARE PROCESSES in a system that can either amplify or dampen the systems response to external influences. When the concentration of a certain variable in a subsystem affects the behavior of the entire system, then changes in inputs or concentrations of that variable can result in multiple, coupled responses. It is possible that some of the responses enhance, while others mitigate, the initial response of the system to the external forcing.

In the case of the Earths system, if a change in the environment leads to additional and enhanced changes in that system, it is said to have resulted in a positive feedback. When a large external forcing results in an even larger response from the affected system, the phenomenon is commonly referred to as ...