Planet Ecodream

By: Sona Jeswani, Myranda Newman-Noah,

Stehpanie Alexander, Madison Pickett

Planet Composition

15% Nutrient rich soil 10% Sandy 45% Rocky 30% Water

Planet Composition

Water

Rocky

Sandy

Nutrient rich soil

Atmosphere Composition

Atmosphere Composition

Nitrogen

Carbon Dioxide

Oxygen

Water

Other Elements

53.09% Nitrogen 30.11% Oxygen 1.09% Water 9.8% Carbon Dioxide 5.91% other trace element

Bass, Flounder, Catfish, salmon, sharks, zooplankton, orca whales, sardines, snails, clams, ducks

Algae, seaweed, phytoplankton

The plants that will be brought will be producers and will be food for the first level consumers which are the zooplankton and most of the fish. Zooplankton are tiny, free-floating organisms that cannot make their own food so they eat phytoplankton which are producers. The small fish(sardines and others) are the primary consumers which eat the algae, seaweed, and phytoplankton and then the bigger fish(secondary consumers) eat the sardines and other small fish. The orca whales and sharks(tertiary consumers) then eat the bigger fish. Since some of the bodies of water are up on the mountains, some of these fish and plants live in colder waters.

Aquatic Biome

Diatoms, Euglenophyta (fresh water), Pyrrophyta, chrysophyta, chlorophyta, rhodophyta, ciliophora, phaeophyta, glaucophytes(green and red algae)

Protists are essential to an aquatic biome. They are the main base of food webs and food chains. Without them, the webs and chains could not survive. They help in the process of producing oxygen. They were the first complex life on earth, and provide as a food source to many living things. Some even help clean large bodies of water!

Oomycetes (water molds) Chytridiomycetes (unicellular chytrids)

Aquatic Biome Climate and Land The climate really depends on the surrounding areas and

the location, but the temperature should fluctuate around 64-70 degrees Fahrenheit because it is usually cooler near water.

30% of the planet Kepler 22b is water. There will be both saltwater and freshwater and different animals will be living in these bodies of water. Due to the amount of water in this biome, there is a lot of evaporation taking place which means that there a lot of precipitation.

The water is both deep and shallow and many different insects and microscopic organisms will be living in these bodies of water.

Aquatic Biome food chain and web

Aquatic Biome food chain and web

Grassland Biome

cows, elephants, deer, cheetahs, hyenas, zebras, scavengers,

vultures, grasshoppers, foxes, hawks, rabbits, mice, ducks, snakes,

sparrows, beetles, scorpions

Grass, trees, shrubs, ferns

The grasshoppers, scorpions and mice will be roaming around in the grass and eating the small grasses around because they are herbivores and they are all classified as primary consumers.

Grassland Biome

Chlorophyta, rhodophyta, protazoan

Description: A special type of fungi will be brought to keep away other

bad fungi. This fungus is called Trichoderma and the role of

these microorganisms inside this fungus is to keep away the

bad fungus.

Black morel, Tulip morel, chanterelles mushrooms,

matsutake mushrooms, Trichoderma(keeps away

bad fungi)

Grassland Biome Climate and Land

The grasslands should be around 70-75 degrees Fahrenheit

because of the direct sunlight that it will be getting. Different

animals such as cows, grasshoppers and other insects will

be feeding on the grasses and the shrubs while the trees will

be providing habitats for the birds and squirrels.

The grasslands will be very flat and all of the

animals that live their will be part of a healthy ecosystem.

Grassland Biome Map and food web

Alpine Biome

Mountain goats, mountain sheep, mountain lions, bald eagles, Elk, deer, moose,

Pine trees, ferns, lichens, mosses, lupine, glacier lilies, alpine paintbrush, spruce trees, cedar trees

Most Alpine plants can grow in sandy and rocky soil. Plants have also adapted to the dry conditions of the Alpine biome. Most plants cannot survive in this biome because they cannot adapt to the harsh conditions which is why only a few selective plants will be brought to this biome. The animals that live in this biome need to be able to adapt to the harsh, dry conditions of this biome. Because of the variety of plants and animals in each trophic level this will be a healthy ecosystem where most of the animals and plants will benefit. The animals brought are all special because they can adapt to these unique environment. For example, the sheep and goats have thick fur and hooves which are imperative to their survival in this biome. The lupine, glacier lilies, alpine paintbrush are all species of beautiful and colorful flowers. This adaptation is designed to increase their attractiveness to pollinating insects, which are rare at high altitudes.

Alpine Biome

Black morel, Tulip morel, chanterelles mushrooms, matsutake

mushrooms

Diatoms and protazoan

There is going to be a wide variety of fungi because they are

decomposers and break down nutrients so the producers can use

them.

Alpine Biome Climate and land

Since the mountains are high up, the

temperature will be cooler than other places

on this planet. The temperature will be

around 50-60 degrees Fahrenheit. This will

be the rugged part of the planet and will be at

an altitude of about 10,000 feet.

This ecosystem is similar to the

ecosystem in the grassland except this biome

has different animals with different habitats.

Alpine Biome food chain and web

Alpine Biome Pictures

Temperate Forest Biome

Rabbits, birds, wolves, squirrels, bears, wolves, lions, deer, elk, birds, raccoons, shrew, frogs, mice, cougars, beetles, ants, scorpions

Grasses, moss, ferns

All of the animals and plants brought are essential to making this ecosystem complete because each animal is dependent on something whether it is a plant or even just another animal. These animals all can adapt to the moist environment and live within the trees of the forest. The birds make their home in the trees and the frogs and insects make their home in the grasses.

Temperate Forest Biome

Black morel, Tulip morel, chanterelles mushrooms, matsutake mushrooms, porcini mushrooms

Protozoa, Ciliophora

Most of the fungus that is being brought in this biome is a special type of fungus called Mycorrhizal fungus. Many farmers and gardeners will inoculate their crops with a mycorrhizal fungus for better growth. An estimated 95% of plants form mycorrhizal partnerships with fungi. The mycelia bring in additional moisture, phosphorous, and other nutrients to their hosts which is a perfect example of mutualism.

Temperate Forest Land and climate

The temperate forest will be a little bit warmer than the rest of the planet because of the humidity. It should be around 75-85 degrees Fahrenheit. This forest tends to get humid sometimes and because of the moist climate, a lot of fungi are capable of growing there which is why there are many different types of fungi. This biome has high levels of precipitation, humidity, and contain a variety of deciduous trees.

Temperate Forest food chain and web

Temperate Forest food chain

Biome Map

It was decided to bring many producers to Kepler 22b to start more food chains because the more producers you have, the more there is for the consumers to eat which means there will be less competition and more of a variety. We decided to have multiple animals for each level of consumers and producers so our food chain in Kepler 22b will remain balanced. There is actually a type of fungus called Cryphonectria Parasitica which is the agent of destruction for an estimated 4 billion chestnut trees in the eastern United States. This is a perfect example of parasitism within an ecosystem. This fungus benefits from the chestnut tree bark, but it slowly starts to kill the chestnut tree which is why we did not bring this fungus. In the Alpine and grassland biome, an example of mutualism is the relationship between flowers and ants. The plants provide the ants with nectar as a food supply whereas the ants helps the plants to keep away other insects from eating its leaves. Another example of mutualism in the ecosystems on our planet is while the pollinators (such as bees, butterflies, etc) help to pollinate the plant for reproduction, the plants also provide its pollinators with nectar as food, thus both sides benefit. This is why there will be pollinators on the planet.

Commensalism: This is when one organism is benefited and the other one is unaffected. An example of commensalism on the planet is when bird lives in a tree. There are a variety of trees and birds on the planet and most of the birds brought live in trees. They make their habitat in a tree and the tree does not get affected.

Overall Climate The temperature should be around 22 degrees Celsius which is around

72 degrees Fahrenheit. This is because it is in the zone called the Goldilocks zone

which is not too hot or not too cold. The Goldilocks zone is the band of distance

away from a star which could allow for liquid water.

The temperature will get cooler around the Alpine biome due to the

elevation and warmer in the Grassland and temperate forest biome due to the

direct sunlight and humidity.

Precipitation Graph:

Biogeochemical Cycles A biogeochemical cycle is the cycling of chemical elements required by life between the living and nonliving parts of the environment. On this planet, we will have a carbon cycle, an oxygen cycle, a water cycle and a nitrogen cycle. Oxygen Cycle: The humans on planet kepler 22b will breath in the oxygen that is available on Through this process, known as the oxygen cycle, there is always a plentiful supply of oxygen available for air-breathing organisms.

Biogeochemical Cycles

Carbon cycle: To sum up the carbon cycle, people and animals release carbon into the air when they breathe and then animals take in the carbon and release oxygen. When a person dies and gets buried, they release carbon into the soil which provides nutrients for the soil and helps it grow.

Biogeochemical Cycles

Nitrogen Cycle: This is where nitrogen is returned to the earth as either decaying matter, humus, decaying leaves and even lightning. Some plants have nitrogen fixation bacteria that add nitrogen through the roots of a plant. Plants then absorb the nitrates through their roots and use it to build various organic molecules (including proteins and DNA) These get passed up the food chain. Decomposers break down either the plants or the animals that ate the plants, releasing the nitrogen back to the atmosphere.

Human Impact

• The colonists have a big impact on Kepler 22b. We will be building a few buildings and such but we will be reducing a lot to prevent polluting the planet. We will not be driving cars which means we would not be releasing any emissions. We will be building a few homes and buildings for the colonists mostly on the rocky part of the surface so we do not waste any fertile land. It is understandable that we will be affecting the planet Kepler 22b, but the colonists will also be recycling, reusing and reducing as much as we can.

“How To” Section:

• One way to reduce the carbon footprint on Planet

Ecodream is to reuse, recycle and reduce, and reuse

whenever possible. They can plant more trees and other

plants on the planet instead of cutting trees and other

plants down. There should be no deforestation going on

like there was on earth. As a result of recycling and

reusing, we should have less trash and the landfill where

all of the trash goes should be far away from our

groundwater so we do not pollute it. Most of the farmers

there will not be using any fertilizers because it is bad for

the planet which means that people will be eating organic

food. We will also have an earth day a month after the

planet is colonized to remind people about what they can do

to help planet Ecodream become a better place.

• A month after planet Ecodream was colonized there will be a celebration, called “Dream day”. To remember everything we had done to planet Earth. For example the pollution that the cars and the factories have produced, or the greenhouse gasses that have been combining with the air that they breathed. This day will help us not to repeat past mistakes of the people of Earth. The people on planet Ecodream will do what a person on Earth would do on Earth day. They will go paperless, and they will cause less pollution like from cars and factories.

All of the animals, plants and

organisms on Planet Ecodream

are what will make the different

ecosystems healthy and will lead

to a clean environment. There

will be occasional holidays to

help remind people to keep

Ecodream clean! Thank you!