Blog #3. Antarctic Ozone Hole

The Antarctica surface temperature has increased a total of 0.005degrees Celsius since 1957. Researchers have found that Antarctica has been warming up since the 1950’s. Researches believe that this has been caused by man-made items and pollution. Some example would be the pollution of cars and factories and greenhouses gases. These gases have taken a toll on Antarctica and surrounding areas. These gases have also caused the Antarctic ozone hole.

This shows how much the ozone hole has increased since 1984

 

The Antarctic ozone hole is an area where ozone levels have dropped over 33% since last tested in 1975. This ozone has been caused because of gases that contain chlorine. With the help of the UV lights the gases release chlorine atoms that cause ozone problems. During the spring the ozone problems increase because there is more sunlight (UV radiations). The spring ozone hole has caused the surrounding areas to also lower their ozone levels.  On October 1994 the ozone hole covered the tip of South Africa and the Falkland Island for a week. The ozone hole damages all living cells from living organisms to plants and animals. Reports show that the ozone layer has been recovering. Satellites show that the total amount of ozone in the Artic hole is decreasing.

If the ozone hole in Antarctica increases it will eventually harm humans. Too much exposure to the ozone can cause you to have trouble with your respiratory system. When breathing in the ozone it can cause diseases like bronchitis, asthma and lung cancer.  The exposure of the ozone will also affect our plants. Too much exposure to the ozone will damage plants and damage their growth.