[ad_1]
Earlier this year, the Arctic ozone layer was diluted enough to be considered a large hole. It wasn’t exactly impressive compared to its southern cousin, but it was certainly much bigger than we had seen it before.
Now, according to the surveillance of the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), we can breathe easier. Has healed again.
The unprecedented northern hemisphere 2020 #Ozone hole has come to an end. the #Polar vortex divide, allowing #ozoneair-rich in the Arctic, closely matching last week’s forecast #CopernicusAtmosphere Monitoring Service.
More information about the NH Ozone hole➡️https: //t.co/Nf6AfjaYRi pic.twitter.com/qVPu70ycn4
– Copernicus ECMWF (@CopernicusECMWF) April 23, 2020
That’s great news for the ecosystems below, which rely on ozone gas concentrations in the stratosphere to act as a planetary-scale sunscreen against damaging rains of UV radiation.
It was not the first time that ozone has thinned so dramatically over the Arctic, with a similar loss in 2011.
However, this year’s event stands out as a true record. Most of the ozone that is about 18 kilometers (11 miles) high has completely vanished, raising concerns about whether changes in our planet’s climate could create even bigger and longer-lasting holes in the future.
When we hear the words ‘ozone hole’, it’s hard not to think of ozone-depleting pollutants like chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) too. Given the right conditions, these destructive molecules love to get trapped in ozone’s oxygens and separate them.
Antarctica has those ‘right conditions’ for half the year. Strong polar winds concentrate pollutants throughout the winter, while summer brings the necessary light energy and stratospheric cloud particles for the reaction to work.
The frozen lid at the other end of the planet is not so unfortunate. A host of nearby mountains and landmasses interfere with the Arctic wind vortex, making a mess of its own ozone-depleting conditions and saving the north from any significant damage.
At least, that’s the usual story. This year’s Arctic Polar Vortex was exceptionally strong, blocking a new supply of ozone from the tropics while lowering the temperature enough to generate stratospheric cloud particles for the chemical reaction to adhere.
With the slowdown of the polar vortex, ozone can now return without breaking rapidly, closing the hole for at least another year.
“CAMS will continue to monitor the evolution of the ozone hole in the Arctic in the coming months,” the monitoring service assures us.
Years of international efforts have been required to reduce CFC emissions enough to allow Antarctic ozone to regenerate slowly, a feat that is still decades to complete.
While less pollutants is also good news for the Arctic, it’s hard to predict how rising temperatures will affect its air currents in the future, with deviations in the polar vortex potentially more frequent over time.
Prior to the 2011 north hole, nothing like it had been seen in more than three decades of satellite records, raising the question of whether this year’s record depletion will be overcome any time soon.
We will make sure to let you know if you return.
[ad_2]
