Thin ozone layer is recovering
The ozone layer in the Northern Hemisphere will be back to the 1980 level sometime in the 2030s, new measurements show.
The ozone layer became thinner in the 80s and 90s but has stabilised since then, writes the Norwegian Environment Agency (link in Norwegian).
From 1979 to 1997, there was less and less ozone in the stratosphere over Norway, which corresponded to the global trend for this time period. This was caused by the release of ozone-depleting substances.
The Norwegian Environment Agency writes that in the period from 1998 to 2021, the effect of these substances being phased out has been seen. The ozone layer has not continued to get thinner.
It is now expected that the ozone layer in the Northern Hemisphere will build up again and that it will be back at the 1980 level sometime in the 2030s. Over Antarctica, the ozone hole is larger, but here too it is expected that the ozone layer will have ‘recovered’ around 2060.
------
