Ozone Layer Protects Us From The Sun ☀️
👉 Table Of Content
◗ Ozone layer
The Earth's stratospheric ozone layer saves us from dangerous ultraviolet rays from the sun. This thin layer filters out some of the sun's UV radiation. Without this protection, we would suffer from skin cancer, cataracts, and even blindness.
◗ Ozone depletion
When chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons were used in refrigerators, air conditioners, aerosol cans, and other applications, they released chlorine gas into the atmosphere. Chlorine reacts with oxygen in the stratosphere to form compounds called oxides of chlorine.
When these compounds react with sunlight, they break down into chlorine atoms and oxygen molecules. These chlorine atoms then destroy the ozone layer.
◗ Ozone depletion timeline
In the 1970s, scientists discovered that the ozone layer was being depleted at an alarming rate.
By 1985, the ozone layer had begun to recover.
However, since 2000, the ozone layer has continued to decline.