A new hole was found in the Earth's atmosphere

A group of climatologists of the Alfred Institute in Potsdam (Germany) made a discovery : it turns out that above the Pacific Ocean there is a hole in the lower layers of the atmosphere that play the role of a “washing machine” for the air surrounding our planet. Through this hole, pollutants enter the upper layers and contribute to the destruction of the ozone layer above the poles of the Earth.

The lower layer, the troposphere, is saturated with hydroxide ions OH-. These ions serve as a kind of washing powder for atmospheric emissions of various kinds - both industrial and domestic. OH radicals are very actively interacting with organic molecules, splitting them into carbon dioxide, water and various kinds of solid fractions. These fractions, concentrating in the clouds, later return to Earth with the rain. So the air is cleared, including from halogenal canales, methylbromide and chlorfto -carlerodes, which destroy the ozone layer located above in the atmosphere.

Having launched an atmospheric probe in the western part of the Pacific Ocean in the equator area, scientists found a zone about 15 km high in the troposphere and several thousand square kilometers, almost free from hydroxide ions. Through this extract, emissions fall into the upper layers of the stratosphere rich in ozone.

But that's not all. Through the same hole, a significant amount of sulfur dioxide, one of the main industrial emissions along with CO2, is stretched into the stratosphere. SO2 reflects part of the sunlight falling on the ground, having an effect, the reverse action of greenhouse gases. The Asian Tigers and China are just nearby, which annually throw tens of millions of tons of sulfur dioxide annually.

Thus, the opened “window” in the stratosphere has a comprehensive effect on the climate, the scale and nature of which has yet to be evaluated.