What Is Happening To The Ozone Layer?
Ozone layer had undergone massive depletion due to natural and man-made causes. It had areas greatly decreased that made it to the point that there is already a “hole” or there is a certain area that no longer contain the ozone layer. There are various factors influencing the ozone concentrations: >>Stratospheric sulfate aerosols mainly from large explosive volcanoes greatly affect the ozone layers. >>Stratospheric winds which bring about changes of the tropical winds in the lower stratosphere move ozone from one area to another. >>Greenhouse gases which might heat the planet and alter weather patterns affecting the magnitude of the stratospheric winds. >>Sunspot cycle which is largely affected by unusual solar activity, solar storms and large solar flares which highly affect the ozone creation by solar UV radiation. >>Stratospheric chlorine, coming mostly from man-made halocarbons.
Ozone layer had undergone massive depletion due to natural and man-made causes. It had areas greatly decreased that made it to the point that there is already a “hole” or there is a certain area that no longer contain the ozone layer. There are various factors influencing the ozone concentrations: >>Stratospheric sulfate aerosols mainly from large explosive volcanoes greatly affect the ozone layers. >>Stratospheric winds which bring about changes of the tropical winds in the lower stratosphere move ozone from one area to another. >>Greenhouse gases which might heat the planet and alter weather patterns affecting the magnitude of the stratospheric winds. >>Sunspot cycle which is largely affected by unusual solar activity, solar storms and large solar flares which highly affect the ozone creation by solar UV radiation. >>Stratospheric chlorine, coming mostly from man-made halocarbons. With all factors affecting the ozone creation, and movements and all that supports its depletion, ozone
The ozone layer is being damaged by various man-made chemicals (eg chloro-fluorocarbons, or CFCs), which find their way from the earth’s surface up to the stratosphere and break down the ozone molecules. Is anything being done to stop this happening? A large number of nations have signed the 1987 Montreal Protocol and its later amendments, which restrict the production of these damaging chemicals. However, because these chemicals survive a long time in the atmosphere, some loss of ozone will persist for at least another 50 years. Worries remain too, that some nations may still continue to produce these chemicals. Do we know whether or not there has already been a loss in atmospheric ozone? Yes. Measurements made from satellites, rockets and the ground all show that at certain times of the year, the ozone layer thins by 50% over the South Pole. Fortunately, losses over Britain and other non-polar regions are very much smaller (about 4% per decade since 1979). Does this mean that much mo
