Final answer:
Photosynthesis in the chloroplast involves converting water and carbon dioxide into glucose and oxygen using solar energy, which excites electrons in the chloroplast. The process takes place in the chloroplast's thylakoid membranes and involves the light-dependent reactions and the Calvin Cycle.
Step-by-step explanation:
Photosynthesis occurs in the chloroplast, an organelle specific to plant cells. When solar energy hits the leaf, it excites electrons within the chloroplast, and this energy enables the synthesis of the end products of photosynthesis. The energy harnessed from sunlight by pigments like chlorophyll in the thylakoid membranes is used to convert water and carbon dioxide into the products of photosynthesis, which are glucose (sugar) and oxygen.
In the light-dependent reactions occurring in the thylakoid membranes, the sunlight's energy is captured and stored in energy carriers ATP and NADPH. Then, through a series of reactions called the Calvin Cycle, carbon dioxide and the energy from ATP and NADPH are used to produce glucose. The overall chemical equation for photosynthesis is: 6CO2 + 6H2O + Light Energy → C6H12O6 + 6O2.
The mesophyll cells of the leaf, where chloroplasts are abundant, serve as the main site for photosynthesis. Exchanges of gases like carbon dioxide and oxygen occur through stomata, small pores on the leaf surface.