The Antarctic ozone hole

Because the effects are so serious, many investigators have been racing to determine the causes of the hole which develops each southern spring within the polar vortex, an isolated air mass that circulates around the South Pole during a large part of the year. This paper reviews two of the foremost theories for this ozone hole. Mechanisms of the pollution theory, which proposes that the cause is chlorofluorocarbons and nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere, are reviewed. The second theory proposes a natural shift in the air movements that transport ozone-rich air into the polar stratosphere during the southern spring as the cause. Current data suggest both theories are correct, but data are considered inconclusive.