Assignment 1: How is the ozone depletion related to earth polar region?

Ozone is a gas that occurs naturally in our atmosphere. Most of it is concentrated in the ozone layer, a region located in the stratosphere several miles above the surface of the Earth. Although ozone represents only a small fraction of the gas present in the atmosphere, it plays a vital role by shielding humans and other life from harmful ultraviolet light from the Sun. Human activities in the last several decades have produced chemicals, such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which have been released into the atmosphere and have contributed to the depletion of this important protective layer. As a result, it is expected that the ozone layer will recover in the coming decades. Certain industrial processes and consumer products result in the atmospheric emission of ozone-depleting gases. These gases contain chlorine and bromine atoms, which are known to be harmful to the ozone layer. Important examples are the CFCs and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), human-produced gases once used in almost all refrigeration and air conditioning systems. These gases eventually reach the stratosphere, where they are broken apart to release ozone-depleting chlorine atoms. Other examples are the halons, which are used in fire extinguishers and which contain ozone-depleting bromine atoms. Ozone depletion describes two distinct, but related observations: a slow, steady decline of about 4 percent per decade in the total volume of ozone in Earth's stratosphere (the ozone layer) since the late 1970s, and a much larger, but seasonal, decrease in stratospheric ozone over Earth's polar regions during the same period. The latter phenomenon is commonly referred to as the ozone hole. In addition to this well-known stratospheric ozone depletion, there are also tropospheric ozone depletion event, which occur near the surface in polar regions during spring. Ozone depletion occurs in many places in the Earth's ozone layer, most severely in the polar region. Concentrations of ozone have declined in both northern and the southern latitudes. While ozone at the equator has been relatively constant, significant reduction has occurred in Antartica. Massive destruction of ozone identified in the antartica constitutes ozone hole. Since the Antartic ozone hole was first reported in 1985, every year since then the ozone depletion has been observed in the Antartic , in the spring season. Significant depletion also

occurs in the Artic ozone layer during the late winter and spring period (January - April). However, the maximum depletion is generally less severe than that observed in the Antarctic, with no large and recurrent ozone hole taking place in the Arctic. From the observation, lesser depletion in some years thought to be related to fewer polar stratospheric clouds over the antartic. Polar stratospheric clouds is form during the polar winter (called polar night) because the lack of sunlight, which results from the tilt of earths axis. During the polar winter, the antartic air mass is isolated from the rest of the atmosphere and circulates about the pole in what is known as the antartic polar vortex. During the formation of the polar stratospheric clouds, nearly all the nitrogen oxides in tha air mass are held in the clouds as nitric acid. The nitric acid particles the grow and leaving the very little nitrogen oxide in the atmosphere. This process facilitates the ozone depletion reactions, which reduce the stratospheric ozone in polar region.

References Daniel b botkin, Edward e keller. Environmental science : earth as living planet. 7th edition. John wiley & sons (asia) pte ltd, united kingdom. http://www.oar.noaa.gov/climate/t_ozonelayer.html.