fifteen to thirty five kilometers above
Earth’s surface a gas called ozone
surrounds the planet the ozone layer
acts as a barrier between Earth and
ultraviolet radiation from the Sun
however pollution has caused the ozone
layer too thin exposing life on Earth to
dangerous radiation Earth’s atmosphere
is made up of six layers the second
layer called the stratosphere contains
the ozone layer the ozone layer is made
up of a highly reactive molecule called
ozone which contains three oxygen atoms
ozone is a trace gas in the atmosphere
there are only about three molecules for
every 10 million molecules of air but it
does a very important job the ozone
layer acts as Earth’s sunscreen
absorbing about 98% of damaging
ultraviolet or UV light but the ozone
layer has gotten thinner chemicals
called chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs are
the primary culprits in ozone layer
breakdown a CFC is a molecule that
contains the elements carbon chlorine
and fluorine CFCs are mostly found in
refrigerants aerosols and plastic
products when CFCs are exposed to
ultraviolet rays in the atmosphere they
break down into substances that include
chlorine the chlorine reacts with the
oxygen atoms in ozone and rips apart the
ozone molecule
areas of damage in the ozone layer are
often called ozone holes but that name
is misleading ozone layer damage is more
like a thin patch with the thinnest
areas near the poles the ozone layer
above the Antarctic in particular has
been impacted by pollution since the mid
1980s there the region’s low
temperatures speed up the conversion of
CFCs to ozone damaging chlorine about
90% of CFCs currently in the atmosphere
were emitted by industrialized countries
in the northern hemisphere in 1989 the
Montreal Protocol banned the production
of ozone depleting substances since then
the amount of chlorine and other ozone
depleting elements in the atmosphere
have been falling scientists estimate
that chlorine levels will return to
their natural state in about 50 years by
then the Antarctic ozone hole will
shrink to smaller than 8 million square
miles
[Music]
[Music]
Earth’s surface a gas called ozone
surrounds the planet the ozone layer
acts as a barrier between Earth and
ultraviolet radiation from the Sun
however pollution has caused the ozone
layer too thin exposing life on Earth to
dangerous radiation Earth’s atmosphere
is made up of six layers the second
layer called the stratosphere contains
the ozone layer the ozone layer is made
up of a highly reactive molecule called
ozone which contains three oxygen atoms
ozone is a trace gas in the atmosphere
there are only about three molecules for
every 10 million molecules of air but it
does a very important job the ozone
layer acts as Earth’s sunscreen
absorbing about 98% of damaging
ultraviolet or UV light but the ozone
layer has gotten thinner chemicals
called chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs are
the primary culprits in ozone layer
breakdown a CFC is a molecule that
contains the elements carbon chlorine
and fluorine CFCs are mostly found in
refrigerants aerosols and plastic
products when CFCs are exposed to
ultraviolet rays in the atmosphere they
break down into substances that include
chlorine the chlorine reacts with the
oxygen atoms in ozone and rips apart the
ozone molecule
areas of damage in the ozone layer are
often called ozone holes but that name
is misleading ozone layer damage is more
like a thin patch with the thinnest
areas near the poles the ozone layer
above the Antarctic in particular has
been impacted by pollution since the mid
1980s there the region’s low
temperatures speed up the conversion of
CFCs to ozone damaging chlorine about
90% of CFCs currently in the atmosphere
were emitted by industrialized countries
in the northern hemisphere in 1989 the
Montreal Protocol banned the production
of ozone depleting substances since then
the amount of chlorine and other ozone
depleting elements in the atmosphere
have been falling scientists estimate
that chlorine levels will return to
their natural state in about 50 years by
then the Antarctic ozone hole will
shrink to smaller than 8 million square
miles
[Music]
[Music]
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