What is the Ozone Layer? Importance of Ozone Layer

Categories : Energy & power plants
Tags : Mechanical engineering

International Ozone Day

We celebrate September 16 every year as the International Ozone Day to commemorate the signing of the Montreal Protocol. Many of us don’t really know what is ozone layer and its importance. On this day of our commitment to save the ozone layer, let us try to know some important basics about ozone layer and its importance for our environment:

Some Common FAQs About Ozone Layer

What is ozone layer?- Ozone is the gas present naturally in the environment. Its chemical formula is O3, while chemical formula of oxygen is O2. In presence of halogens O3 gets converted to O2.
Where is Ozone present?- Ozone is present is two layers of the atmosphere. About 10% of ozone is present in lower layer of atmosphere called troposphere, which is located at a distance of about 6-10 miles from the surface of the earth. The major part of ozone comprising of the remaining 90% is present in the upper layer of atmosphere called stratosphere located at the distance of about 30 miles from the surface of the earth. It is this layer which is called as the ozone layer.
What is the importance of ozone layer?- The sun radiates large variety of radiations including ultraviolet radiations which are very harmful to the human body. The ozone layer absorbs ultraviolet radiation rays and prevents them from coming to the surface of the earth thus saving the human beings from harmful rays. This ozone layer in the stratosphere is considered to be “good ozone.” The ozone layer occurring naturally in the lower layers of the atmosphere helps remove the pollutants from the surface of the earth.
Where is the maximum amount of ozone layer present?- The amount of ozone layer present in the atmosphere varies from location to location. This also keeps on changing as per the time seasonally or even daily. The change of the ozone layer in a particular place occurs due to winds going on constantly in the stratosphere layer of the earth and also continuous production and destruction of the ozone layer. Due to peculiar pattern of the stratosphere, the amount of ozone layer found near the poles is more than that found hear the equator.

Reference

Ministry of Environment and Forest, Ozone Layer

This post is part of the series: International Ozone Day Special

Today, September 16, we celebrate International Ozone Day to commemorate the signing of Montreal Protocol on this day of 1987. The aim of the protocol is to phase out the use and production of ozone depletion causing gases from various parts of the world in various phases.