What is the Calvin Cycle?
The Calvin Cycle is a process in which stored energy is utilized to create usable compounds in a photosynthetic organism. This chemical reaction is sometimes known as the Calvin-Bensom-Bassham cycle, after Melvin Calvin, James Bassham, and Andrew Benson, the University of California researchers who first described the process. The chemistry behind the Calvin Cycle is extremely complex, but the basics can be understood by laypeople. Photosynthetic organisms use sunlight to create energy which is stored in the form of several chemical compounds. For the organism, this is just the first step, as the energy does not do anything for the organism once it has been stored. In the Calvin Cycle, the energy is used to transform carbon dioxide into a sugar which can be used by the plant, in a process which is sometimes referred to as carbon fixation. This process takes place inside the stroma, a network of connective tissue in the chloroplasts of the organism. Chloroplasts are specialized organell
The calvin cycle is a dark (not requiring light) reaction that happens in the chloroplast of a plant cell. The light reactions form ATP, which is used in the dark reaction. It uses this ATP and carbon dioxide to form sugar, which is the food the plant needs to survive. Look here for more information: http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/conn.ri…
