The Antarctic Ozone Hole: Past, Present, and Future

The Antarctic Ozone Hole is the poster child of ozone depletion. It was one of the first scientific issues that showed the impact of anthropogenic substances on a hemispheric scale. While not the prime motivation for the historic 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (MP), scientific results (greatly driven by Prof. Susan Solomon) led to the full strengthening of the MP, resulting in a steady decrease of ozone depleting substances that began in the mid-1990s. This presentation will show some early context to the ozone hole, how the ozone hole has evolved to the present day, and the impact of the MP on the ozone hole's behavior. The presentation will also include projections of the ozone hole through the 21^stcentury and provide some caveats on its expected behavior.