Unprecedented! Ozone hole over Antarctica is one of the largest and deepest in last 15 years

The Ozone hole over the Antarctica continent has become unprecedentedly deeper and larger in the last 15 years, the latest finding of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has shown. The WMO in a statement said that the Ozone layer hole over Antarctica reached its peak at 24 million square kilometers which is the highest and deepest in the last 15 years, EcoWatch in collaboration with the World Economic Forum reported. The latest development comes after the hole contracted to its lowest level last year which the scientists had linked to unusual climate events rather than reduced emissions.

The WMO in its finding said that the growth in the size of the hole increased in the month of August every year and continued till the month of October. The team of scientists at the WMO recorded the size of the hole at 24 million square kilometers (approximately 9.3 million square miles) which is the highest in the last 15 years. The WMO also said that since expanding to unprecedented levels, the hole has again started contracting and at present its size is about 23 million square kilometers (approximately 8.9 million square miles).

Vincent-Henri Peuch, director of the EU’s Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) was quoted as saying that continued depletion was observed in the last few weeks due to the return of the sunlight to the South pole. Peuch also said that the unusual and short lived Ozone hole which was observed last year was due to the special meteorological conditions.

The Ozone layer which protects the Earth from receiving the harmful UltraViolet rays emitted from the Sun plays one of the most significant roles for the living beings. The depletion of the Ozone layer over the Antarctica due to the release of Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) has gripped the world since the second half of the 20th century. All countries of the world had also come together in the form for signing the Montreal Protocol in the year 1987 in a bid to arrest the depletion of the Ozone layer over the snow laden continent.