The biosphere is the layer of the planet Earth where life exists. This layer ranges from heights of up to ten kilometres above sea level, used by some birds in flight, to depths of the ocean such as the Puerto Rico trench, at more than 8 kilometres deep.
These are the extremes; however, in general the layer of the Earth containing life is thin: the upper atmosphere has little oxygen and very low temperatures, while ocean depths greater than 1000 m are dark and cold. In fact, it has been said that the biosphere is like the peel in relation to the size of an apple.
The development of the term is attributed to the English geologist Eduard Suess (1831-1914) and the Russian physicist Vladimir I. Vernadsky (1863-1945). The biosphere is one of the four layers that surround the Earth along with the lithosphere (rock), hydrosphere (water) and atmosphere (air) and it is the sum of all the ecosystems.
The biosphere is unique. So far there has been no existence of life elsewhere in the universe. Life on Earth depends on the sun. Energy, provided as sun light, is captured by plants, some bacteria and protists, in the marvellous phenomenon of photosynthesis. The captured energy transforms carbon dioxide into organic compounds such as sugars and produces oxygen. The vast majority of species of animals, fungi, parasitic plants and many bacteria depend directly or indirectly on photosynthesis.