Monday, October 3, 2011

Arctic Ozone Depletion

  1. There are reports that a large hole in the Arctic Ozone layer has formed this year.
  2. The Ozone layer protects us from radiation - especially solar ultraviolet, but also from some cosmic radiation.
  3. The Ozone is formed by the radiation itself acting upon the atmosphere's oxygen, changing it from the normal O2 version to Ozone's O3 arrangement.
Amidst the alarming stories of widespread exposure to high levels of UV radiation due to this event, the reporting does say that an unusual set of circumstances conspired to create conditions where Chlorine-based compounds have been able to deplete the Ozone. Along with that analysis tends to be the alarmist cry that this might become an annual event.
Somehow the editors (?) of these reports can't see that if events occur annually, they don't really qualify to be called unusual circumstances.
It seems they can't see that the general rule would be that if there's not enough ozone, that's because there's not enough radiation to form it. Of course, admitting that would mean admitting that the sun is cooling - or at least we're receiving less radiation from it - and that we're headed for another Ice Age.

Posted by Procrustes 17

Related Posts:
The Ice Age is Coming, Baby!
Radiation and Antibiotics 
CERN, Cosmic Rays, and Cover-Ups 

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