In this animation of total ozone, the luminance values of the colors bounding areas of missing data are used in interpolating over these regions. The missing data are mapped to the grayscale portion of the color map.

In this animation of total ozone, the luminance values of the colors bounding areas of missing data are used in interpolating over these regions. The missing data are mapped to the grayscale portion of the color map.

In this animation of total ozone, the luminance values of the colors bounding areas of missing data are used in interpolating over these regions. The missing data are mapped to the grayscale portion of the color map.

TOMS provides dramatic visual evidence of the annual growth and decay of the Antarctic ozone hole. The ozone losses over Antarctica result from reactions with the products of man-made chlorine and bromine compounds. Because of the tilt of the Earths axis, continuous darkness falls at the South Pole from March 21 to September 21. The dark region in the middle of the July 1 total ozone picture is polar night, where TOMS cannot make measurements. Ozone losses are in blue. Beginning in August, returning sunlight reaches the edges of Antarctica providing chlorine and bromine compounds with energy to rapidly destroy ozone. By mid September, the ozone loss peaks, creating an ozone hole over Antarctic. For more information see www.gsfc.nasa.gov-topstory-2003-1208toms.html

A relatively warm Antarctic winter in 2004 kept the thinning of the protective ozone layer over Antarctica, known as the ozone hole, slightly smaller than in 2003. Each year the hole expands over Antarctica, sometimes reaching populated areas of South America and exposing them to ultraviolet rays normally absorbed by ozone. Scientists have new tools to study this annual phenomenon, and the human-produced compounds that contribute to ozone breakdown are decreasing. On September 22, 2004, ozone thinning over Antarctica reached its maximum extent for the year at 24.2 million square kilometers (9.4 million square miles). The largest maximum area on record was 29.2 million square kilometers, in 2000. On October 5, 2004, the ozone layer reached a low value of 99 Dobson Units.

Auras instruments study tropospheric, or low-level atmospheric chemistry and will monitor of air pollution around the world on a daily basis. Aura measures five of the six "Criteria Pollutants" identified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The complexity of pollution transport makes it difficult to quantify how much industry contributes to poor local air quality.

Auras instruments study tropospheric, or low-level atmospheric chemistry and will monitor air pollution around the world on a daily basis. Aura measures five of the six "Criteria Pollutants" identified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Auras instruments study tropospheric, or low-level atmospheric chemistry. Many different organizations monitor regional areas of the troposphere, but Aura is the first to record daily global measurements.

Auras instruments study tropospheric, or low-level atmospheric chemistry and will monitor of air pollution around the world on a daily basis. Aura measures five of the six "Criteria Pollutants" identified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In this animation, Aura shows a large concentration of tropospheric ozone is being transported from South America to Africa.

Students are introduced to the concept of air quality by investigating the composition, properties, atmospheric layers and everyday importance of air. They explore the sources and effects of visible and invisible air pollution. By learning some fundamental meteorology concepts (air pressure, barometers, prediction, convection currents, temperature inversions), students learn the impact of weather on air pollution control and prevention. Looking at models and maps, they explore the consequences of pollutant transport via weather and water cycles. Students are introduced to acids, bases and pH, and the environmental problem of acid rain, including how engineers address this type of pollution. Using simple models, they study the greenhouse effect, the impact of increased greenhouse gases on the planet's protective ozone layer and the global warming theory. Students explore the causes and effects of the Earth's ozone holes through an interactive simulation. Students identify the types and sources of indoor air pollutants in their school and home, evaluating actions that can be taken to reduce and prevent poor indoor air quality. By building and observing a few simple models of pollutant recovery methods, students explore the modern industrial technologies designed by engineers to clean up and prevent air pollution.

Total ozone measurements from Earth Probe TOMS over Antarctica for the period July 25, 1999 through September 25, 1999

Total ozone measurements from Earth Probe TOMS over Antarctica for the period June 1998 through December 1998

The 2003 Antarctic ozone hole was the second largest ever observed, according to scientists from NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). The Antarctic ozone hole is defined as thinning of the ozone layer over the continent to levels significantly below pre-1979 levels. Ozone blocks harmful ultraviolet B rays. Loss of stratospheric ozone has been linked to skin cancer in humans and other adverse biological effects on plants and animals. The size of the 2003 Antarctic ozone hole reached 10.9 million square miles on September 11, 2003, slightly larger than the North American continent, but smaller than the largest ever recorded, on September 10, 2000, when it covered 11.5 million square miles. This animation is an update to animation ID 2809 -- this version includes about 2 additional months of data.

Scientists from NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have confirmed the ozone hole over the Antarctic this September is not only much smaller than it was in 2000 and 2001, but has split into two separate "holes"

Satellite data show the area of this years Antarctic ozone hole peaked at about 26 million square kilometers -- roughly the size of North America -- making the hole similar in size to those of the past three years, according to scientists from NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Researchers have observed a leveling-off of the hole size and predict a slow recovery.

Ozone measurements from Earth Probe TOMS for February 1, 1997 through May 31, 1997 showing the formation of an Arctic ozone hole

Total ozone over the arctic for September 1, 1999 through November 30, 1999, as measured by Earth Probe TOMS

This site features Java Applet, QuickTime, and Flash animations that illustrate characteristics and functions of the atmosphere. They show how atmospheric temperature, pressure, and density change with respect to changing altitude, the way different kinds of radiation (x-ray, ultraviolet, visible, and infrared) act in various levels of the atmosphere (troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere/ionosphere), how oxygen gas and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) interact with ultraviolet radiation to create and deplete ozone, and the manner in which radiation is trapped in the atmosphere, causing the greenhouse effect and global warming. The animations can be paused and rewound to stress important points. These resources are suitable for use in lectures, labs, or other teaching activities.

This site includes simulations of more than 40 phenomena: sea ice and CO2, climate change (230-year period), clouds and precipitation, coral reef evolution (starting 21,000 years ago), universal fire shape, fire twirl and burst behavior, tornadoes, thunderstorms, typhoons, El Niño events, greenhouse gases and sulfate aerosols, polar vortex breakdown, CO2 and temperature, CFCs in the ocean, cloud evolution (7-day period), daily weather in the U.S., and more.