Y is there a hole in the ozone layer over antarctica?

Question

I am confused cuz there is no pollution over antarctica ,yet, the hole was discovered over antarctica.pls explain y it is so.

Answer 1

The ozone hole is caused by the effect of pollutants in the atmosphere destroying stratospheric ozone. During the Antarctic winter something special happens to the Antarctic weather.

Firstly, strong winds blowing around the continent form, this is known as the "polar vortex" -  this isolates the air over Antarctica from the rest of the world.

Secondly, special clouds form called Polar Stratospheric Clouds. Clouds don't normally form in the stratosphere and these turn out to have the effect of concentrating the pollutants that break down the ozone, so speeding the process up.

Ozone is mainly broken down by chemicals called ChloroFluoroCarbons CFC's and also by nitrogen oxides. CFC's ironically were first used in large quantities because they were thought to be safe and inert (unreactive) chemicals. They are a group of chemically similar gases used in refrigeration systems, air conditioners, aerosols, solvents and in the production of some types of packaging. Nitrogen oxides are a by-product of fuel burning, e.g. aircraft exhausts.

CFC's don't occur naturally, they are man-made chemicals. They are very useful when they are where they are supposed to be, and doing what they are supposed to be doing. But once released into the atmosphere they are a serious pollutant. The problem is it took us many years to realise this during which we thought they were perfectly harmless, but in fact were building up to levels that will take decades for them to disappear again even if we stop producing them altogether.

The actual reactions that destroy ozone are very complicated. They take place on the surface of the ice particles of the Polar Stratospheric Clouds and it takes only a small amount of CFC to destroy an awful lot of ozone.

Answer 2

"Reactions that take place on polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) play an important role in enhancing ozone depletion. PSCs form more readily in the extreme cold of Antarctic stratosphere. This is why ozone holes first formed, and are deeper, over Antarctica."

Answer 3

idk y. maybe greenhouse gasses collected in antarcita for some reason

Answer 4

This is because of the polar stratospheric clouds present over the Antarctic.The lower stratosphere over the south pole is the coldest spot on Earth.From June to September,cold winds blow around the region which prevent warmer air from entering.

Small amount of water vapour in the stratosphere freezes and forms thin clouds of ice crystals as the temperature in the lower stratosphere drops below -80 (minus 80) degree celcius.They are called polar stratospheric clouds.

These ice crystals convert safe molecules like CONO2 and HCL to more reactive ones like HOCL and CL2.Theses two compounds release CL atoms.At polar stratospheric temperatures,this sequence is extremely fast and it dominates the ozone-destruction process.

The Arctic polar vortex is much weaker than the Antarctic,as Arctic temperatures are several degrees higher and polar stratospheric clouds are less common, and tend to break up earlier in the spring.That is why ozone hole is confined to Antarctic only.

Answer 5

because its north and heat rises.. most of the pollution is in a heat form, going up and building and destroying the layer..

Answer 6

u see the entire toxic gases ,cloroflurocarbon etc r ejected from the various countris these toxic substances move away form these areas and slowly move towards colder regions i.e the antarica and over here they react with ozone and causes the release of three molecules of oxygen the problem is that the rate at which oxygen is released is much faster than the formation of ozone threfore there is hole in ozone layer.  

Answer 7

the jet stream pushed it up there

Answer 8

solar winds?