WORLDTECHNOAA and NASA data show 2026 Antarctic ozone hole ranked seventh-largest in 48 years
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NOAA and NASA scientists have reported that unusual weather pushed the Antarctic ozone hole to an unusually large size in 2026, while saying the protective ozone layer is still on track to recover later this century.
Ranking and size of the 2026 hole
Based on NOAA and NASA analysis of the seasonal mean area, the 2026 hole became the seventh-largest in 48 years of monitoring. During peak depletion, between September 7 and October 13, 2026, its average extent covered about 9.6 million square miles (25 million square kilometers), a figure the agencies put at more than twice the area of the United States.
Weather and the effect of emission cuts
A powerful polar vortex fuelled the growth of the hole, and atypical weather conditions contributed to its unusually large size. Scientists nonetheless said the hole would have been larger still had international cooperation not reduced levels of ozone-destroying chemicals in the atmosphere.
Why the stratospheric ozone layer is monitored
Researchers track the amount of ozone in the stratosphere continuously, since the layer serves as Earth's protective shield, filtering harmful solar radiation before it can reach living things.
Open questions
- Will the ozone layer recover by later this century as the agencies project?