There is a large hole in our backyard. It’s not in the ground, but above our heads.
Here in the Great Southern Region of Western Australia I’ve felt the sun like I have not felt the sun anywhere else in the world. It has to be experienced to acknowledge it is not the same here as it is there. Overseas guests confirm this.
I guess that most of us are aware that the size of the ozone hole fluctuates over the course of a year. Typically it forms each year in August and peaks in October after which it dwindles to finally closing up in late November or December.
This year, due to unusual atmospheric conditions the Ozone Hole is the smallest it has been in 30 years and is set to close earlier. This is according to the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) measurements which have been used to make the forecast.
It is described as being as a result of warmer temperatures in the stratosphere, a layer of the atmosphere roughly 11 – 40 kms (7 to 25 miles) above the surface of the Earth. Unfortunately this particular event is not as a direct result of us human beings taking things seriously and adjusting our actions and behaviour in a cohesive manner.
I’ve felt that the sun has been a lot less harsher than it usually is. Especially coming into summer. Still somewhat intense, it doesn’t have the harsh sting that it usually does. If there is any particular cause or reason for this, my guess is that a reducing and diminishing Ozone Hole for this time of the year may at least be reasonable cause. Even if it is due to a warmer than usual stratosphere. My anecdotal experience appears to make sense.
Further Reading:
The Ozone Hole website – History
Petit Paradis 