VATIS UPDATE Article

According to the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI), Russia, an ozone sounding in the Arctic atmosphere carried out between January and March 2016 showed significant depletion in some areas. According to AARI, this observation was made by the Cape Baranov Ice Base research station, which carried out 12 ozone soundings. The average altitude of the ozone layer was measured at 30 km. The minimum ozone concentration in the atmosphere column from the underlying surface to an altitude of 25 km above the station was observed on February 27, 2016 (2.989 g/ sq. m., 140 Dobson units), which accounted for only 42 percent of the typical February average.

According to scientists from the Alfred Wegener Institute, Germany, the extreme development of the cyclonic stratospheric polar vortex and the resulting stratospheric cooling have been observed in the Arctic since December 2015, and could cause significant ozone layer depletion in the Arctic in the 2016 winter-spring period. Stations involved in the Stratospheric Ozone Loss Determination international program continue to perform ozone soundings. A comprehensive analysis of the data obtained will help scientists deepen their understanding of the Arctic ozone layer formation and depletion mechanisms.