Earth's sunscreen – the ozone layer
Useful Sites
Contains a timeline of significant discoveries regarding ozone depletion and a comprehensive list of other websites that provide teaching resources.
The ozone layer (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, USA)
Written in non-technical language this provides a good introduction to the topic. Ozone formation and destruction is described simply and research into the ozone hole is discussed.
The ozone layer: life's protective blanket (Australian Antarctic Division)
Looks at why the thinning of the ozone layer occurs over the Antarctic in spring and summer.
Ozone depletion (Atmospheric Research and Information Centre, UK)
Provides a series of fact sheets on ozone depletion, organised under three headings: 'The science of ozone depletion', 'The impacts of ozone depletion' and 'Managing ozone depletion'.
Ozone - Good Up High Bad Nearby (The United States Envrionmental Protection Agency)
Explains the difference between stratospheric and tropospheric ozone.
Ozone Hole Watch (Goddard Spae Flight Center - NASA)
A NASA site containing a range of data and information and educational resources regarding ozone hole and its depletion in the atmposhpere..
The Nobel Prize in chemistry 1995 (Nobelprize.org, Sweden)
This poster describes the work on ozone chemistry that won a Nobel Prize.
The changing atmosphere in 2005 (Australian Academy of Science)
The transcript of a lecture by Nobel laureate Sherwood Rowland about chemical reactions in the atmosphere.
Australian Government Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities
Ozone and synthetic greenhouse gases
Provides information on ozone depleting substances, synthetic greenhouse gases and Australian regulations to implement the Montreal Protocol.
Australian halon management strategy
Describes strategies for management of ozone-depleting substances in 'The Australian Halon Management Strategy (AHMS)' and 'Controlled substances'.
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Northern chill produces Arctic ozone hole (ABC Science, 3 October 2011)
Reports on the first occurrence of an ozone "hole" over the Arctic.
Why is the ozone hole in the less polluted southern hemisphere? (Ask an Expert, 3 June 2009)
Explains why the ozone hole is in the southern hemisphere.
Record ozone loss over Antarctica (News in Science, 3 October 2006)
Reports that European Space Agency measurements indicate that Antarctica suffered its highest recorded single-year loss in ozone.
Ozone hole is recovering (News in Science, 31 August 2006)
Suggests that the ozone layer may be fully recovered by mid-century.
Antarctic ozone hole may have peaked (News in Science, 19 October 2005)
Suggests that the hole in the ozone layer has reached a plateau in size.
Ask the experts (Scientific American)
Answers questions about the stratospheric ozone hole and surface level ozone.
UV forecast chart (Australian Bureau of Meteorology)
Daily UV forecasts are available here.
The Ozone Hole Tour (Centre for Atmospheric Science, University of Cambridge, UK)
Covers the discovery of the hole, recent ozone loss over Antarctica, the science of the ozone hole
and latest research.
Science@NASA (USA)
The incredible shrinking ozone hole
Reports that the ozone hole was the largest ever in 2000, but closed up earlier than it has in recent years.
Peering into the ozone hole
Explains why the size of the ozone hole is not simply related to the concentration of CFCs in the stratosphere.
The ozone depletion phenomenon (Beyond Discovery, National Academy of Sciences, USA)
A detailed look at the basic research that led to the discovery of stratospheric ozone depletion.
(A PDF file of the complete article is available.)
The science of ozone depletion (Environmental Protection Agency, USA)
This site has many useful annotated links. It is very up-to-date and has an extensive glossary.
Ozone depletion FAQ Part I: Introduction to the ozone layer
Ozone depletion FAQ Part II: Stratospheric chlorine and bromine
Ozone depletion FAQ Part III: The Antarctic ozone hole
Ozone depletion FAQ Part IV: UV radiation and its effects
This set of FAQs (frequently asked questions) has been put together by Robert Parson, a chemist at the University of Colorado.
Page updated December 2011.