Carbon from air→Photosynthesisestimated from ecosystem carbon exchange
One path

Respiration returns carbon to the air.

Another path

Carbon can be stored for later use.

Another path

Growth adds wood and other tissue.

Wood growth over time → woody biomass

Wood added in a single year is a change; woody biomass is the amount accumulated.

Year by year · forest sites

Estimated photosynthesis and wood growth were often weakly linked.

1951–2020 · vegetation models

Woody biomass rose in proportion to photosynthesis.