A recent article published in Nature’s “News and Views” column cited a 2006 article co-written by ESSIC Scientist Ross Salawitch as one of the most significant studies in the history of the Antarctic ozone hole and the successful environmental policy that followed.
In the article, author Susan Solomon from the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology chronicles the ozone hole from the moment it was discovered to the enactment of the Montreal Protocol and its various Amendments, the policy that led to global CFC phase-out and prevented the ozone layer from collapsing. Solomon was limited to 20 citations in this broad overview.
The 2006 article Salawitch co-authored, citation 16, is credited with the demonstration that the coupling of chemical reactions involving chlorine-containing and bromine-containing species is a key ingredient in polar ozone depletion, especially in the Arctic. This was a breakthrough in the understanding of Arctic ozone chemistry.
Today, Salawitch is a professor at ESSIC as well as UMD’s Department of Atmospheric & Oceanic Science and Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. His research focuses on quantification of the effects of human activity on atmospheric composition. Major topics of current interest are stratospheric ozone depletion and recovery, air quality, climate change, and the global carbon cycle.
To read Solomon’s article, click here: “The Discovery of the Antarctic Ozone Hole”.
