Copernicus: Unusual Antarctic Ozone Hole During 2020-22

Data from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) about the closure of the Antarctic ozone hole in 2022 show unusual behaviour. Not only did the ozone hole take longer than usual to close, it was also relatively large. This is notable because it is not unique to 2022, but rather similar to the 2020 and 2021 ozone holes and different from what has been observed in the past 40 years.

The Antarctic ozone hole usually opens during the Southern Hemisphere spring in late September and begins to decrease in October, before it usually ends in November. CAMS data from the past three years show a different behaviour: during this time, the ozone hole remained larger than normal throughout November and is coming to an end through December. More detailed information can be found in the article Three strange Antarctic ozone hole seasons in a row: what we know.

3D evolution of the Antarctic ozone hole to December 13, 2022. Animation from 2017 to 2022 is available on the KAMS ozone monitoring webpage. Source: Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service, ECMWF

The CAM system manager, Vincent Henri Beuch, explains the reasons for this new behavior: “Several factors influence the extent and duration of the ozone hole each year, in particular the strength of the polar vortex and stratospheric temperatures. The last three years were marked by strong vortices and low temperatures, causing It has led to consecutive large and prolonged periods of ozone holes. There is a possible link to climate change, which tends to cool the stratosphere. However, it is totally unexpected to see three consecutive unusual ozone holes. It is certainly something to look at.”

The closing dates for the ozone hole in 2020 and 2021 were December 28 and December 23, respectively, and scientists expect this year’s hole to close in the coming days.

Not only were the last three ozone holes exceptionally persistent, but they also had a relatively large extension. During these three years, the ozone hole was over 15 million square kilometers (the approximate size of Antarctica) for most of November.

The heatmap shows the extent of each Antarctic ozone hole below 60S latitude since 1979 and the date. The past few seasons have been extraordinarily long. (Data for 2022 recorded as of December 7) Source: Competency Assurance Management System

But despite the recent relatively large ozone holes, there are clear signs of an improvement in the ozone layer. Thanks to the implementation of the Montreal Protocol, concentrations of ozone-depleting substances have slowly but steadily declined since the late 1990s. Within 50 years, concentrations in the stratosphere are expected to return to pre-industrial levels and ozone holes will no longer be experienced regardless of the polar vortex and temperature conditions.

For more information on how the KSMS tracks the ozone hole, see the Ozone Monitoring page on the website over here.

More information about the unusual behavior of modern ozone holes in this Article [MI1]

About Copernicus and the ECMWF

Copernicus is part of the European Union’s space program, funded by the European Union, which is the flagship program for Earth observation. The company operates through six thematic services: Atmosphere, Marine, Land, Climate Change, Security and Emergencies. It offers freely available operational data and services that provide users with reliable and up-to-date information about our planet and its environment. The program is coordinated and managed by the European Commission and implemented in partnership with Member States, the European Space Agency (ESA), the European Organization for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), the European Center for Medium Distance Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), EU agencies, Mercator Océan and others.

The ECMWF operates two services of the European Union’s Copernicus Earth Observing Programme: the Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service (CAMS) and the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). They also contribute to the Copernicus Emergency Management Service (CEMS), which is implemented by the European Union Joint Research Council (JRC). The European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) is an independent intergovernmental organization supported by 35 countries. It is a 24/7 operational and research institute that produces and disseminates digital weather forecasts to its member states. This data is fully available to the National Meteorological Services of the Member States. The supercomputer facility (and associated data archive) at the ECMWF is one of the largest of its kind in Europe and member states can use 25 percent of its capacity for their own purposes.

ECMWF has expanded the number of locations in which it operates. In addition to the UK headquarters and computing center in Italy, new offices focusing on activities carried out in partnership with the European Union, such as Copernicus, will be located in Bonn, Germany.

Copernicus Atmosphere Observing Service Networkhttp://atmosphere.copernicus.eu/
Copernicus Climate Change Networkhttps://climate.copernicus.eu/
More information about Copernicus:www.copernicus.eu
ECMWF website:https://www.ecmwf.int/

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Nuria Lopez
communication | Copernicus Contracts and the Press
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