People have been talking about the ozone layer since the 1980s. The ozone layer – around 15 to 30 kilometres above the Earth – protects humanity from the Sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays.

After scientists sounded the alarm about the ozone layer depleting and its harmful consequences for human beings, humanity banned chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) commonly found in refrigerants,

sprays and solvents. Advertisement Since then, many studies have claimed that the ozone layer has regenerated – and said that it could even become whole again in a few decades. But now, a

new report says that might not be the case. But what does the report say? And what does this mean for humanity? LET’S TAKE A CLOSER LOOK: WHAT DOES THE REPORT SAY? The study was published in

researchers found the ozone hole had in 2022 depleted at its core by 26 per cent compared to 2004, as per _Down To Earth._ It also found that, over the past four years, the hole was

remarkably massive in size and long-lived. “Our analysis ended with data from 2022, but as of today the 2023 ozone hole has already surpassed the size of the three years prior – late last

month it was over 26 million square kilometres, nearly twice the area of Antarctica,” said Kessenich. Advertisement As per _CNN,_ the study found that the hole in the ozone layer grows

during the spring and shrinks during the summer. > It reached record dimensions from 2020 to 2022. Advertisement “This means that the hole is not only larger in area, but also deeper

throughout most of spring,” said Kessenich. The study also added that CFCs are likely not the only things to blame for the depletion of the ozone lawyer. The researchers also said noted that

the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer – which regulates the production and consumption of man-made chemicals known to deplete the ozone – has been

‘indisputably successful’. Advertisement “We made connections between this drop in ozone and changes in the air that is arriving into the polar vortex above Antarctica. This reveals the

recent, large ozone holes may not be caused just by CFCs,” Kessenich added. “Six of the last nine years have had really low ozone amounts and extremely large ozone holes,” study co-author

Annika Seppala of New Zealand’s Otago University told _AFP._ Advertisement “What might be happening is something else is going on in the atmosphere now – possibly because of climate change –

and that’s masking some of the recovery,” she added. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR HUMANITY? As per _Yahoo.com,_ Kessenich in the study warned that the public is under the impression that the

problem of the ozone layer has been fixed. Advertisement “When I began my work in 2021, I expected, like many of us, that the ozone hole was healing,” she told _Yahoo News Australia_. > 

But the data shows that is not the case. Advertisement The researchers said that understanding ozone variability is important because of the major role it plays in the Southern Hemisphere’s

climate. “We all know about the recent wildfires and cyclones in Australia and New Zealand and the Antarctic ozone hole is part of this picture. “While separate from the impact of greenhouse

gases on climate, the ozone hole interacts with the delicate balance in the atmosphere. Because ozone usually absorbs UV light, a hole in the ozone layer can not only cause extreme UV

levels on the surface of Antarctica, but it can also drastically impact where heat is stored in the atmosphere,” said Kessenich. Advertisement As per _Yahoo.com_, the study has warned that

the change in heat distribution could modify wind patterns and surface climate. But some remain sceptical of the findings. As per _Down To Earth,_ the United Nations Environment Programme

(UNEP) has predicted that the ozone layer will mend by 2060. The major UN-backed assessment in January found that the agreement was working. Advertisement It projected the ozone layer should

be restored to 1980 levels over the Antarctic by around 2066. Smaller holes over the Arctic were projected to recover by 2045, and for the rest of the world in around two decades. > NASA

 has also said that the ozone layer is regenerating. Advertisement Martin Jucker, a scientist at the Climate Change Research Centre at the University of New South Wales in Australia, is

among the doubters. He told _CNN,_  “Existing literature has already found reasons for these large ozone holes: Smoke from the 2019 bushfires and a volcanic eruption (La Soufriere), as well

as a general relationship between the polar stratosphere and El Niño Southern Oscillation.” “We know that during La Niña years, the polar vortex in the stratosphere tends to be stronger and

colder than usual, which means that ozone concentrations will also be lower during those years. The years 2020-22 have seen a rare triple La Niña, but this relationship is never mentioned in

the study.” _ABC_ quoted Jucker as pointing out that the study did not incorporate data from 2019 and 2002. “Those events have been shown to have strongly decreased the ozone hole size, so

including those events would probably have nullified any long-term negative trend in ozone concentratios,” Jucker added. “It is questionable how the authors can remove 2002 and 2019 from the

record but not 2020-22, given that all of these years have been shown to be dominated by very special and rare events,” Jucker said. The outlet quoted University of Leeds atmospheric

scientist Martyn Chipperfield as saying, “The atmosphere is a complex system and many factors can lead to changes in the thickness of the ozone layer.” “We need to remain vigilant on …

[ozone-depleting> compounds but, as the paper shows, also be aware of the impact of other factors such as climate change.” Leading ozone scientist Susan Solomon, who was not involved in

the research, told AFP that the study should be viewed through the lens that “the past few years have been quite unusual”. Solomon led previous research showing that 2020’s ozone hole was

made 10 percent wider by the massive “Black Saturday” wildfires in Australia. The gigantic eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai volcano off Tonga in 2022 is also believed to have

affected recent ozone levels. Clearly, more study is needed to determine who is right. _With inputs from agencies_