Effects of depletion of ozone layer

What is Ozone?

Ozone is an inorganic molecule with the chemical formula O3 It is a pale blue gas
with a distinctively pungent smell. It is an allotrope of oxygen that is much less
stable than the diatomic allotrope O2, breaking down in the lower atmosphere to
O2. Ozone is formed oxygen molecule reacts with ultraviolet (UV) light and
electrical discharges within the Earth's atmosphere. It is present in very low
concentrations throughout the latter, with its highest concentration high in the
ozone layer of the stratosphere.
 What is Ozone layer?

The ozone layer is a region of Earth's stratosphere that absorbs most of the Sun's
ultraviolet radiation. It contains a high concentration of ozone (O3) in relation to
other parts of the atmosphere, although still small in relation to other gases in the
stratosphere. The ozone layer contains less than 10 parts per million of ozone,
while the average ozone concentration in Earth's atmosphere as a whole is about
0.3 parts per million. The ozone layer is mainly found in the lower portion of the
stratosphere, from approximately 15 to 35 kilometers (9 to 22 mi) above Earth,
although its thickness varies.
Importance of the Ozone layer

The Ozone layer filters out the UV radiation from the sun by absorbing it. Ozone
absorbs UV-C and partly UV-B and the remaining UV-B that makes it to the earth
causes skin burns and also causes direct DNA damage. In worst case the Ozone
layer prevents the cancer from being caused to humans by absorbing and
reducing the constant exposure of UV radiation.
Depletion of Ozone layer

The depletion of Ozone can be caused by the free radicales of nitrous Oxide
(N2O), nitric oxide (NO) and atomic chlorine etc. However the well known reason
for the depletion of the ozone is because of the Organohalogens like
Chlorofluorocarbon and Bromofluorocarbons. The stable CFC and BrFC reaches
the stratosphere and reacts with O3 by the action of UV radiation to form free
radicals of Cl- and Br- that breaks down 100,000 of Ozone molecule. By 2009
Nitrous Oxide was the largest Ozone Depleting Substance (ODS).