Science and Space

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Solar storm depleted ozone layer

The gigantic solar storms of November 2003 severely depleted the ozone layer above the Arctic for as long as eight months, suggest newly released satellite observations. The planet's magnetic field funnelled some of the storm's electrons into the upper atmosphere above the poles. The electrons hit nitrogen molecules there, breaking some of them into nitrogen ions. Those reactive atoms then combined with nearby oxygen molecules to form molecules of nitrogen oxide - levels of which rose in November and December 2003, according to the satellite data. Finally, downward-blowing winds in a polar vortex above the Arctic pushed these molecules into the stratosphere. There, each nitrogen oxide molecule could rip apart hundreds of ozone molecules, just as CFCs do. The effect remained even into July 2004. But ozone was not affected in the upper stratosphere over the Antarctic because of a seasonal effect.

posted by: kyawoo at 09:49 | link | comments (3) |
sun, earth

Comments:

#1  04 March 2005 - 01:22

 

Your information is incorrect - its all Bush's fault.

Anonymous

#2  06 March 2005 - 12:24

 

I was going to warn you that such information would anger some people. It looks like some one beat me too it.

It's like the way that the twentieth century saw a huge decline in vulcanism and thus there was less volcanic stuff in the air to cool the planet. This is completely independent from the "fact" that global warming is caused by me being greedy.

LibertyBob

Anonymous

#3  09 March 2005 - 11:32

 

yea it's all Bush's fault, and don't forgot my but hole of a Prime Minister, Johhnie Howard of the land down under (Australia) also plays an evil part.

Anonymous

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