Recovery of the Ozone Hole Could Lead to Increased Warming in Antarctica
28.01.2010 - Atmosphere & Space, Water & Oceans, Antarctic
When first discovered in the 1980’s above Antarctica, the damage that had been inflicted against the ozone layer, the Earth’s primary defense system against the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays, was largely considered a consequence of the use of CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons). Under the 1987 Montreal Protocol, many countries banned the use of CFCs to give the ozone layer a chance to recover. Now, some 20 years later, the ozone layer is starting to recover; however a new study published in the Geophysical Research Letters shows that this could lead to increased warming in Antarctica.
Using meteorological data from 1980-2000, scientists from the University of Leeds in the UK and the University of Kuopio in Finland were able to find that the hole in the ozone layer actually generated high-speed winds that swept up sea salt into the atmosphere, which in turn led to the formation of moist, brighter-than-usual clouds. These reflective clouds have been protecting the Antarctic from warming resulting from the rise in greenhouse gas emissions.
However, other scientists such as Judith Perlwitz from the University of Colorado and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have mentioned that while the ozone layer recovers, greenhouse gas emissions will continue to rise, causing wind speeds to increase and create the same kinds of cloud formations as we are currently witnessing.
