Definition of Ozone layer
The colorless gas layer that creates a protective layer in the upper atmosphere of Earth is called ozone layer. When oxygen molecules absorb UV photons, they go through a chemical process called photolysis or photodissociation that splits an oxygen molecule into two oxygen atoms. This process is how ozone is created.
In turn, the ozone molecules absorb UV radiation with a wavelength of between 310 and 200 mm, keeping the dangerous radiation out of the atmosphere. Ozone molecules break into an oxygen molecule and an oxygen atom during this process.
To create a new ozone molecule (03), the oxygen atom (O) joins with the oxygen molecule (O.) once more. Thus, this ongoing cycle of decomposition and regeneration maintains the overall amount of ozone.
Since the latter half of 1970, when ozone layer depletion first came to the notice of the entire world, numerous debates and studies have been conducted to determine the origins and potential impacts of ozone depletion. Numerous research endeavors have also been focused on identifying a potential remedy.
Causes of Ozone layer Depletion
The rise in free radicals, including hydroxyl radicals, nitric oxide radicals, and atomic chlorine and bromine, is the root cause of ozone depletion. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are the primary component responsible for over 80% of the total ozone layer depletion in the stratosphere.
In the Earth’s lower atmosphere, these molecules are extremely stable, but when exposed to ultraviolet light in the stratosphere, they decompose and liberate a free chlorine atom. Chlorine monoxide (C,) and an oxygen molecule are created when a free chlorine atom combines with an ozone (O,) molecule. Now, two molecules of oxygen and a chlorine atom are created when chlorine monoxide combines with an ozone molecule. Chlorine monoxide is created when the free chlorine molecule and ozone combine once more. Ozone in the stratosphere is being reduced or depleted as a result of the ongoing process.
What Ozone Layer Does?
The Earth is shielded from the sun’s UV radiation by the ozone layer. The consequences for the Earth could be disastrous if human activity causes the ozone layer to be destroyed.
There is ozone in the upper atmosphere. At the apex of the stratosphere, which is located thirty miles above Earth, is ozone.
The bluish gas known as ozone is created when three oxygen atoms combine to absorb solar radiation. Two oxygen atoms, or 02, make up the kind of oxygen that people breathe in. Ozone, one of the substances causing the greenhouse effect, is regarded as a hazardous pollution when it is present on Earth’s surface.
About 90% of the ozone in the stratosphere is found in the highest regions.
Ozone depletion is the term used to describe two different but related phenomena that have been seen since the late 1970s: a substantially bigger loss in stratospheric ozone during the springtime over Earth’s polar regions, and a constant decline of around 4% per decade in the total volume of ozone in Earth’s stratosphere (ozone layer).
Ozone layer depletion : Danger to the Environment
One naturally occurring trace element in the atmosphere is ozone. It is continuously produced in the high atmosphere by sunlight and oxygen. Ozone has been shielding the planet from UV or harmful light from the sun for millions of years. Concern over the global environment and the health implications of life on Earth is growing as a result of this ozone layer poisoning.
An increasing number of dangerous UV (ultraviolet) rays are entering our atmosphere as the ozone layer is thinning. These rays weaken immunity to illnesses, induce cancer, and create cataracts. Scientists have been warning people all over the world about the ozone layer’s thinning and pointing the finger primarily at chemical pollution in recent years.
Causes of Ozone layer Depletion
The ozone layer is being destroyed due to a variety of factors, not just one specific one; these factors have combined to create an international issue. Ozone is threatened by man-made chemicals, fossil fuels, industrial waste, and vehicle exhaust. When chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs, were found in the 1970s, scientists were alarmed.
These CFCs were blown into foam plastics, utilized as aerosol propellants, solvents, and refrigerants. This is why it is illegal anywhere to use CFCs in aerosols.
The ozone layer may also be attacked by other substances like nitrous oxides from fertilizers and bromine halocarbons.
Methane and nitrogen oxides are two more substances that deplete ozone in the stratosphere. Landfills, waste dumps, wetlands, and cow dung all release it. Reduce the number of high-altitude aircraft flights (reducing oxygen and water vapor deposition) as a means of protecting the ozone layer.
Reduce the number of rocket launches (water vapor deposition).
Promote the growth of oxygen-producing plants and oppose the destruction of forests Reduce or limit the amount of moisture and steam that is released into the atmosphere at high temperatures.
Wherever possible, stop producing and releasing chemicals that are known to deplete the ozone layer, such as CFCs and HCFCs. If feasible, provide subsidies for the creation of safer substitutes.
Implement measures to ensure that novel substances intended for extensive usage are evaluated for their impact on ozone. Concern over the ozone layer’s reduction Although the Antarctic ozone hole is having less of an impact and that of the global ozone layer—estimated to be around 4% each decade
the hole has attracted a lot of attention for the following reasons: Early in the 1980s, it was estimated that the ozone layer would thin by around 7% over a period of 60 years. The press covered the surprise discovery of a significant “hole” in 1985 extensively.
Previously, the exceptionally fast ozone loss in Antarctica was written off as a measuring error. Many were concerned that ozone holes might begin to form over other parts of the world, but as of right now, the only other significant ozone depletion that has been documented is a smaller ozone “dimple” that is visible over the North Pole during the Arctic spring. At middle latitudes, ozone has decreased, but not as much (around 4%–5% decrease).
Global ozone levels may drop significantly more quickly if certain conditions (colder stratospheric temperatures, more stratospheric clouds, more active chlorine) worsen. According to conventional global thinking, the stratosphere will cool.
Ozone-depleted air flows out into neighboring places when the Antarctic ozone hole splits. In the month after the Antarctic ozone hole broke up, there have been reports of ozone depletion in New Zealand of up to 10%.
Ozone layer depletion’s effects
Since UVB rays from the sun are absorbed by the ozone layer, ozone layer depletion is predicted to raise UVB levels on the surface, thereby increasing the risk of harm, including skin cancer. The Montreal Protocol was created for this very reason.
There is no concrete observational evidence connecting ozone layer depletion to an increased risk of skin cancer and eye damage in humans, despite the fact that drops in stratospheric ozone are closely associated with CFCs and there are strong theoretical grounds to assume that ozone depletion will result in increases in surface UVB.
This is partially due to the fact that UVB, which has also been linked to some types of skin cancer, is not absorbed by ozone and it is very difficult to adjust data for population lifestyle changes.
Ozone layer depletion affects more than just people; it also has an impact on plants and animals. It can negatively impact cyanobacteria, which aids in the correct absorption and utilization of nitrogen by key food crops like rice. Ozone layer depletion can also have an impact on phytoplankton, a crucial part of the marine food chain.
Research in this area have demonstrated that UV radiation can impact the orientation and motility of these microscopic creatures, hence influencing their survival rates.
The 1987 implementation of the Montreal Protocol, which reduced and controlled industrial emissions of chlorofluorocarbons, was prompted by growing concern over the causes and effects of ozone depletion. International accords have been quite successful in lowering the emissions of these compounds, but more understanding and collaboration amongst all nations is needed to address the issue.
