Ozone hole over Antarctica grows to three times size of Brazil, is one of the biggest on record

The satellite data shows that this year's hole in the ozone layer above Antarctica has grown to become one of the biggest ever seen, with experts suggesting that the massive gap could have been caused by the eruption of Tonga's underwater volcano in early 2022.

Tonga was rocked by a massive underwater volcano last year in January and the eruption triggered Tsunami warnings. The dramatic explosion of the Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai volcano was even seen in satellite images as the eruption sent smoke and ash into the air.

European Space Agency's (ESA) Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite observed that the ozone hole reached approximately 26 million square kilometres in area on Sep 16, 2023.

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The findings suggest that the gap has become one of the largest seasonal holes ever observed. Previously, the largest ozone hole maximum occurred in 2000, when it reached nearly 28.4 million square kilometres in area.

ESA said that the hole, which is what scientists call an 'ozone-depleting area,' has reached roughly three times the size of Brazil.

The space agency explained how the ozone hole is measured. It noted that the ozone hole's dimensions change frequently, with the size of the ozone hole increasing from August through October, peaking between mid-September and mid-October.

The polar vortex begins to weaken and eventually dissipate as southern hemisphere stratospheric temperatures begin to climb. ESA said that by the end of December, ozone levels will be back to normal.

The ozone layer is basically a region of Earth's stratosphere that absorbs most of the Sun's ultraviolet radiation. The ozone layer is a high concentration of ozone, which is a type of oxygen molecule with three atoms instead of two.

Copernicus Sentinel-5P – short for Sentinel-5 Precursor – is the first Copernicus satellite dedicated to monitoring our atmosphere. It was launched in October 2017. It is part of the fleet of Copernicus Sentinel missions that ESA develops for the European Union's environmental monitoring programme.

As quoted by ESA, Diego Loyola, DLR senior scientist, commented, "The Sentinel-5P total ozone products have an accuracy at the percentage level compared with ground-based data and this allows us to closely monitor the ozone layer and its evolution. The Tropomi measurements are extending the global ozone data record of European satellite sensors covering almost three decades."

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