(ORDO NEWS) — In 1982, scientists noticed an ozone gap over the territory of Antarctica, which is expanding every year. In 2019, it reached its lowest annual peak since the beginning of observations, and this year it has become much deeper and wider.
Significant growth was observed from August to October. On October 2, the size of the hole reached its maximum size (about 25 million square kilometers). These conclusions were made after the analysis of images from the Copernicus Sentinel-5 satellite, owned by the European Space Agency.
In 2015 and 2018, ozone holes measuring 25.6 and 22.9 million square meters were already recorded. km respectively. Each year the picture is radically different, so there is no need to talk about making forecasts. Ozone decreases over Antarctica when the temperature in the stratosphere decreases, said Vincent-Henri Pösch of the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts. It was found that the hole expands during the formation of stratospheric clouds at a temperature of 78 ° C below zero. Solar radiation negatively affects ozone by destroying its molecules.
The South Pole has not been deprived of sunlight for the past two weeks. As a result, the ozone layer is noticeably reduced. The World Meteorological Organization estimates that normal ozone concentrations over Antarctica, which were before the 1980s, will recover by 2060. You will have to wait long enough. Nobody knows how the breach will behave next year.
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