One step forward, one step back.
Posted 04.25.2008 at 2:21 pm
13 Comments
Glacial meltwater in Antarctica Blue ice covering Antarctica's Lake Fryxell forms from glacial meltwater.
Joe Mastroianni, National Science Foundation
The good news is that the ozone hole over Antarctica is slowly healing, thanks to controls on ozone-depleting substances that were once widely used in products such as refrigerators and aerosol cans. Stratospheric ozone protects us from harmful ultraviolet radiation that can cause problems such as skin cancer and crop damage.
Unfortunately, the recovery of the ozone hole has a dark side: The return of a thin, suspended blanket of stratospheric ozone will raise temperatures over the southern polar region, according to a new study by scientists at the University of Colorado at Boulder, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. The scientists, who relied on a NASA computer model for their predictions, also report that the healing of the hole will weaken winds that currently shield the Antarctic interior from warmer air masses to the north.
Antarctica may not be the only continent affected: The researchers also found that the changes in air circulation caused by ozone recovery could mean wetter conditions during late spring and early summer in southern South America, and warmer and drier weather in Australia—which is already suffering from a long drought.
While average temperatures in most places on the globe have been increasing, the interior of Antarctica has experienced cooler summers and autumns. "We may finally see the interior of Antarctica begin to warm with the rest of the world," says Judith Perlwitz, the lead author of the study, which will be published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters on April 26.
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If this is true, does that mean global warming will happen regardless of our actions? I mean, if its hot with no ozone, and hot with ozone.... do we just chalk it up to nature?
you cant put it so black and white man, its a pretty complex thing. say the gulf stream, u no the thing tha heats europe and the eastern u.s, shuts down. well, the equator would theoreticly hotter, but north and south would be cooler. so its a thing with checks and balances. maybe so theyll get hotter there, but antartica will no longer on the top of the list for tanning
you cant put it so black and white man, its a pretty complex thing. say the gulf stream, u no the thing tha heats europe and the eastern u.s, shuts down. well, the equator would theoreticly hotter, but north and south would be cooler. so its a thing with checks and balances. maybe so theyll get hotter there, but antartica will no longer on the top of the list for tanning
you cant put it so black and white man, its a pretty complex thing. say the gulf stream, u no the thing tha heats europe and the eastern u.s, shuts down. well, the equator would theoreticly hotter, but north and south would be cooler. so its a thing with checks and balances. maybe so theyll get hotter there, but antartica will no longer on the top of the list for tanning
I can't believe they are claiming that humans fixed the hole in the OZONE...
Notice how years ago the "EVERYONE PANIC" story was the hole in the ozone, now its all healed and Global warming is our big enemy now. What most people do not know is Ozone (O3) is such an unstable molecule that it changes its molecular state constantly and chaotically. Scientists have a hard time replicating it for this reason. So yes the ozone is periodically going to have holes and close itself up. That is its nature. Man didn't close the ozone, it closed and healed itself. Kind of like the way global warming is going to happen, and when it does, do you think the media will put that on the front page for weeks on end. Nope...it won't. Its not a way to scare you into submission. There are volcanoes and other world catastrophies that cause more damage to the Earth than we have in our what...200 years of industrialized living. This Earth has seen more hell than anything humans have done to it.
lnwolf41
Well at least we don't have to worry about mutant ice
creatures developing now. Of course we could help keep the temp down by increasing the reflectivity in the area.
Make large concrete pontoons strapped together, painted
white to cover the bay and ocean. Set up solar panels
to run compressers to fill up high pressure tanks then using seawater shoot the mixture into the air; rapid exspansion will super cool the water and air; makeing snow/ice crystals
First he invented the Internet, now repairs the Ozone hole. Al Gore deserves all of the millions of dollars he has made off of Global Warming.
Eco Billionaires Rule!
from Winnipeg, Manitoba
Global Warming is Inevitable. All that is frozen will melt, and that what is not will freeze, the poles will change, citys will be lost in the ocean. Plates to shift, the planet will breath. The Aftermath lies Lifes ability to survive, which is our key concept. Obviously an outcome of relieve and new beginning, where there is no longer diversity and chaos but just, human beings all working for one thing.
from Vancouver, Washington
Look, humans have messed up the planet, oh well. Nothing we can do now but ease the destruction rather than crash head first into it. Cut down on trash, change your lightbulbs, and buy a 1984 Honda Civic (look up the mpg).
from Vancouver, Washington
Look, humans have messed up the planet, oh well. Nothing we can do now but ease the destruction rather than crash head first into it. Cut down on trash, change your lightbulbs, and buy a 1984 Honda Civic (look up the mpg).
I'd be willing to cut my CO2 output to zero if I get to stay in one of Al Gore's mansions. Then he wouldn't be using 20 times as much as a normal american, just 19.
look. the whole "crap, man! the ozone is depleating and we're all going die of skin cancer!" is a complete exaggeration. the ozone changes by up to 40% EVERY WEEK.
and the ozone hole over antartica? it comes back every year