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Ozone Hole Shrinks
Aired September 30, 2002 - 14:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: And now to the stratosphere, that churning layer of air and weather between six and 30 miles above the Earth. The stratosphere is home to this planet's all-important ozone, which NASA now says is in surprisingly in good condition.
Joining us now with the lowdown on that is CNN science correspondent Ann Kellan.
Ann, I guess we should set this up by saying it is in the ozone whole month. Is that right? How do we say it?
ANN KELLAN, CNN SCIENCE CORRESPONDENT: This is the season for the ozone layer. You know, it protects the Earth from the sun's harmful ultraviolet radiation. And if you get a sunburn, you know how that can hurt.
This time of the year, the end of winter in Antarctica, for the past 20 years, there has been a seasonal thinning of this protective layer. Word from NASA and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration is the ozone hole is smaller this years than previous years. It has not been this small since 1988, and that is good news.
Now what's unusual it's split in two. You are going to see this. The ozone hole is in dark blue; it started developing in August. In Late September, you can actually see the hole splitting in two. NASA is blaming this on weather patterns in upper atmosphere being so strong, so forceful it caused it to split in two. And if you can see, it, gets close to South America, and scientists don't see that as a problem, because it is smaller, and it is getting smaller even since these graphics were taken.
So basically, the hole this year is 6 million square miles in the upper atmosphere. And compare that to last year's 10 million square miles; we are talking an area more or less the size of North America. That is a big hole.
What causes this thinning? Scientists say it's chlorine and bromine. Those are chemicals that were once used in refrigerators, air conditioners, fire suppressants. We stopped manufacturing those chemicals; they had been banned. But that is not why the ozone hole is smaller, the scientists say. Those chemicals are still in the air and still causing problems. The basic reason is the weather; it is warmer in the South Pole this year around that Antarctic causing the hole to be smaller.
PHILLIPS: All right, Ann, let's talk about why we should care about this. Obviously, you and I know, but let's let our viewers know why this should mean something to you and me right now.
KELLAN: Kyra, you have been in Antarctica. Right?
PHILLIPS: That is true.
KELLAN: The folks from NOAH told me at the South Pole they actually made this prediction that the hole was getting smaller. So you know firsthand though the impact of having a hole -- when you were there, what did you have to do.
PHILLIPS: Oh, my gosh. Suncreen. I mean in the earlobes, up the nose. We got big lecture about sunscreen, OK? We did not mess around.
KELLAN: So you can tell obviously they take this seriously. If you get a thinning of the ozone, you are losing that protection from the ultraviolet rays. So obviously, they want to study this and see what it would take to close up that hole.
Back in 1979 -- we have a graphic that shows year by year from 1979. There was no hole. And then every year in '80s, in the '90s, the hole gets bigger and bigger and bigger, and that is why I think there is some excitement that now we are seeing it getting smaller. But they are not saying that this is a trend. They want to watch this to see what happens in the coming years.
PHILLIPS: Wouldn't that be nice if we didn't need sunscreen ever again, ANNOUNCER: ?
KELLAN: That will be the day. I don't think in our lifetime.
PHILLIPS: That will be lead story with you for about the next year.
KELLAN: Absolutely.
PHILLIPS: All right, Ann Kellan, thank you so much.
KELLAN: Thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired September 30, 2002 - 14:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: And now to the stratosphere, that churning layer of air and weather between six and 30 miles above the Earth. The stratosphere is home to this planet's all-important ozone, which NASA now says is in surprisingly in good condition.
Joining us now with the lowdown on that is CNN science correspondent Ann Kellan.
Ann, I guess we should set this up by saying it is in the ozone whole month. Is that right? How do we say it?
ANN KELLAN, CNN SCIENCE CORRESPONDENT: This is the season for the ozone layer. You know, it protects the Earth from the sun's harmful ultraviolet radiation. And if you get a sunburn, you know how that can hurt.
This time of the year, the end of winter in Antarctica, for the past 20 years, there has been a seasonal thinning of this protective layer. Word from NASA and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration is the ozone hole is smaller this years than previous years. It has not been this small since 1988, and that is good news.
Now what's unusual it's split in two. You are going to see this. The ozone hole is in dark blue; it started developing in August. In Late September, you can actually see the hole splitting in two. NASA is blaming this on weather patterns in upper atmosphere being so strong, so forceful it caused it to split in two. And if you can see, it, gets close to South America, and scientists don't see that as a problem, because it is smaller, and it is getting smaller even since these graphics were taken.
So basically, the hole this year is 6 million square miles in the upper atmosphere. And compare that to last year's 10 million square miles; we are talking an area more or less the size of North America. That is a big hole.
What causes this thinning? Scientists say it's chlorine and bromine. Those are chemicals that were once used in refrigerators, air conditioners, fire suppressants. We stopped manufacturing those chemicals; they had been banned. But that is not why the ozone hole is smaller, the scientists say. Those chemicals are still in the air and still causing problems. The basic reason is the weather; it is warmer in the South Pole this year around that Antarctic causing the hole to be smaller.
PHILLIPS: All right, Ann, let's talk about why we should care about this. Obviously, you and I know, but let's let our viewers know why this should mean something to you and me right now.
KELLAN: Kyra, you have been in Antarctica. Right?
PHILLIPS: That is true.
KELLAN: The folks from NOAH told me at the South Pole they actually made this prediction that the hole was getting smaller. So you know firsthand though the impact of having a hole -- when you were there, what did you have to do.
PHILLIPS: Oh, my gosh. Suncreen. I mean in the earlobes, up the nose. We got big lecture about sunscreen, OK? We did not mess around.
KELLAN: So you can tell obviously they take this seriously. If you get a thinning of the ozone, you are losing that protection from the ultraviolet rays. So obviously, they want to study this and see what it would take to close up that hole.
Back in 1979 -- we have a graphic that shows year by year from 1979. There was no hole. And then every year in '80s, in the '90s, the hole gets bigger and bigger and bigger, and that is why I think there is some excitement that now we are seeing it getting smaller. But they are not saying that this is a trend. They want to watch this to see what happens in the coming years.
PHILLIPS: Wouldn't that be nice if we didn't need sunscreen ever again, ANNOUNCER: ?
KELLAN: That will be the day. I don't think in our lifetime.
PHILLIPS: That will be lead story with you for about the next year.
KELLAN: Absolutely.
PHILLIPS: All right, Ann Kellan, thank you so much.
KELLAN: Thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
