Slow Jam the Nitrogen Cycle

Nitrogen is an element essential to life on earth. Nitrogen gas makes up 78% of the air we breathe, and is a key building block of all living things, critical to the formation of proteins, DNA, and RNA.

The nitrogen cycle is the continuous series of processes by which nitrogen is transformed from an atmospheric gas into various other forms, passing from the air, to the soil, to living organisms and eventually back to the atmosphere again.

While the total amount of nitrogen here on Earth is fixed, human actions can greatly impact where nitrogen is found in the cycle, accelerating some components of the cycle while slowing others. To put it simply, it’s a highly complex, interwoven system involving the atmosphere, people, plants, water, soil, microbes, and more. Tune in as the Water Rocks! team, with special guest Dr. Matt Helmers, help us make sense of it all as they SLOW JAM the Nitrogen Cycle.

Nitrogen Cycle Resources

The Nitrogen Cycle: Processes, Players, and Human Impact (Nature Education Knowledge)
Nitrogen in the Environment Publication Series (University of Missouri Extension/WQ251-262, WQ276-277)
Hypoxia 101 (Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient Task Force)
Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy 
Clean Water Iowa