Future Volcanic Eruptions May Cause Ozone Hole Over Arctic

Posted by Dale on Mar 06, 2002 at 10:27
(204.212.222.70)

An "ozone hole" could form over the North Pole after future major volcanic eruptions, according to the cover story by a NASA scientist in tomorrow's edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"Unlike the Antarctic where it is cold every winter, the winter in the Arctic stratosphere is highly variable," Tabazadeh said. NASA satellite and airborne observations show that significant Arctic ozone loss occurs only following very cold winters, according to Tabazadeh.

Large volcanic eruptions pump sulfur compounds into the Earth's atmosphere. These compounds form sulfuric acid clouds similar to polar stratospheric clouds made of nitric acid and water. The clouds of nitric acid and water form in the upper atmosphere during very cold conditions and play a major part in the destruction of ozone over Earth's poles. Following eruptions, volcanic sulfuric acid clouds would greatly add to the ozone-destroying power of polar stratospheric clouds, researchers said.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/03/020306073904.htm

All this gloom and doom about an ozone hole in the arctic rather than just the Antarctic and not one mention of CFCs. How politically incorrect!


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