High levels of ultraviolet light can be harmful to many biological systems, as this higher energy radiation has a mutagenic effect on plant and animal cells. This activity studies the relationship between the amount of ultraviolet (UV) radiation that gets to Earth's surface and the amount of stratospheric ozone overhead. Users plot remote sensing data from the NASA Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) satellite and UV monitors at the South Pole to see if any correlation exists between the two variables. Links to related sites and to a radio program from Naional Public Radio on the ozone hole that appeared over the Arctic in 2000 are provided. Educational levels: Undergraduate lower division, High school

John Pratte

English

Digital Library for Earth System Education

 Ozone: Stratospheric Ozone  
Ultraviolet Light  
Introduction  
 
Fig. 1: Ultraviolet region UVA, UVB, and UVC. UVA 
radiation is between 320-400 NM UVB radiation ranges 
between 290-320 NM UVC ranges between 200-290 NM 
Last week, we studied ground-level ozone.  We 
discovered that our modern way-of-life produces 
ozone in great quantities, which can be extremely 
harmful to the environment since it is a chemical 
poison to many life forms, including humans.  This 
week, we are going to investigate stratospheric 
ozone.  As we read last week, this ozone is 
responsible for filtering out ultraviolet radiation from 
sunlight and reducing levels of it found at the Earth's 
surface.  This action is extremely important to life 
forms found in our ecosystems, since this high-
energy form of ionizing radiation can have damaging 
effects. 
 
While our eyes allow us to estimate the amount of visible light that comes from the Sun, we are generally 
unaware of the amount of non-visible light that it is striking the Earth.  The diagram at the right shows the 
wavelength range of light that is emitted by the Sun.  As we can see, the visible part of the spectrum is an 
extremely tiny portion of the total range.  While most of the Sun's energy is in this range, there is still a 
significant portion of the Sun's energy that is emitted in the infrared and ultraviolet range.  While a great 
deal of the infrared radiation is absorbed by the many greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the only 
thing standing between us and the ultraviolet radiation is stratospheric ozone. 
 
Why do we need to filter out a lot of this UV radiation?  The amount of energy that can be absorbed from 
electromagnetic radiation depends inversely on the wavelength of the radiation.  The shorter the 
wavelength of the radiation is, the greater the amount of radiation that can be absorbed.  We do need 
some UV radiation exposure during our day.  Our bodies naturally produce Vitamin D when exposed to 
UV radiation.  However, UV radiation can be extremely harmful to organisms in large quantities.  The 
large amount of energy that can be absorbed from it is enough to ionize many atoms, including those 
found in the DNA in your cells.  Because of this, there is a much greater risk of contracting skin cancer if 
you are exposed to high doses of UV radiation.    
 
UV radiation is also linked to many other harmful effects.  It can cause cataracts, which may cause 
blindness for both humans and animals. It damages plants at the cellular level, leading to damaged 
leaves and eventual death.  In the oceans, it can wipe out large numbers of tiny organisms called 
plankton.  These organisms are important because they are major source of food for many marine 
animals and because they absorb so much carbon dioxide.  Without them, we would see a great die off of 
fish and marine mammals and an increase in the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide. 
 
Ozone and Ultraviolet Light 
Interaction  
 
The increasing concern over increased UV radiation at the Earth's surface is due to the depletion of 
stratospheric ozone.  Under normal condition, most of the UV radiation that strikes our atmosphere is 
absorbed in a layer of the atmosphere that lies 
between 15 and 30 kilometers above the Earth's 
surface where there is a significant amount of 
ozone gas.  This is known as the ozone layer. 
 
The process by which ozone (O3) is created and 
absorbs the ultraviolet radiation is shown at the 
right.  When radiation below 200 nanometers (NM) 
strikes molecular oxygen (O2), it breaks it apart 
into two atoms of oxygen.  These oxygen atoms 
are then free to combine with other molecules of 
oxygen to create ozone.  This process is reversed 
when UV radiation in the UVB range is absorbed 
by ozone.  This high-energy radiation breaks the 
bonds of the molecule, creating a molecule and a 
single atom of oxygen.  This free oxygen atom then combines with an ozone molecule, causing it break 
down into two molecules of oxygen. 
Fig. 2: The formation and destruction of stratospheric ozone 
 
In the absence of man-made chemicals, these processes occur so as to continually create and 
breakdown ozone.  However, in the presence of certain chemicals, this balance is upset, and more ozone 
is broken down than is created.  This causes an overall reduction in the amount of ozone, which reduces 
our atmosphere's ability to absorb UV radiation.   
 
Learn more about how man-made chemicals destroy the ozone layer and view an animation of the 
process by viewing the Stratospheric Ozone page from project LEARN. Supplemental information on 
stratospheric ozone can be viewed on EPA's Ozone Depletion site.  
 
 
Listen 
 
Requires RealPlayer 
Topic: Ozone Layer 
Date: May 30, 2000 
Summary: NPR's Richard Harris reports that another significant ozone hole 
formed over the Arctic this year. This loss of ozone lets more damaging 
ultraviolet light reach the Earth's surface. At a news conference today, scientists 
attributed this year's ozone loss to clouds in the stratosphere, which persisted 
into the spring (http://www.npr.org). (3:30) 
Link: http://www.npr.org/ramfiles/atc/20000530.atc.12.ram 
 
Internet Addresses of Linked Sites 
Project LEARN Stratospheric Ozone: http://www.ucar.edu/learn/1_6_1.htm 
EPA Ozone Depletion: http://www.epa.gov/ozone/science/ 
 
UV Index and Dobson Units 
Measurements  
 
In this week's lab, we are going to look at the relationship between the amount of UV radiation that gets to 
the Earth's surface and the amount of stratospheric ozone.  In order to do this, we first need to decide 
upon what we will be measuring.  
 
As we saw previously, the UV portion of the spectrum comprises many wavelengths.  One way to 
measure the amount of UV radiation would be to pick a particular wavelength in that spectrum range and 
to measure its amplitude.  While this method will give us detailed information about how this portion of the 
spectrum is affected, it would be problematic since it would not involve sampling of the entire range.  
There might be processes that actually affect the amount of radiation in other parts of the UV spectrum 
without affecting the one particular wavelength that we chose.  A better method of measuring the amount 
of UV radiation would involve sampling all wavelengths.  This is done with the UV index, which is a 
weighted sum of the amount of energy being delivered in the UV range.  This sum is weighted to take into 
account the fact that different wavelengths of ultraviolet radiation do more damage to human skin than 
others. 
 
We also need to measure the amount of ozone in the stratosphere.  This is not as easy as it sounds.  
Ozone is spread out over the entire region of the stratosphere.  At different heights above the surface, 
there are different concentrations.  Therefore, just as with wavelength, if we were to sample at just one 
height, we would not get an accurate picture of the total amount of ozone.  The way that has been 
decided upon by the scientific community is to calculate the thickness of ozone that would result from 
compressing all of the ozone in the stratosphere into a single layer at a temperature of 0 Celsius and one 
atmosphere of pressure.  The thickness of this layer is measured in Dobson units (100 DU is about 1 
millimeter). 
 
Other Factors 
UV Radiation  
 
While the amount of ozone in the stratosphere gets most of the headlines, the amount of UV radiation at 
the surface does depend on other factors.  These factors concern the angle at which sunlight is striking 
the Earth, how much atmosphere is above the surface, and the type of weather and surroundings. The 
factors below are taken from the EPA's brochure "The Sun, UV, and You".  
 
Time of Day - The Sun is at its highest in the sky around noon. At this time, the Sun’s rays have the least 
distance to travel through the atmosphere and UVB levels are at their highest. In the early morning and 
late afternoon, the sun’s rays pass through the atmosphere at an angle and their intensity is greatly 
reduced.  
 
Time of Year - The Sun’s angle varies with the seasons, causing the intensity of UV rays to change. UV 
intensity tends to be highest during the summer months.  
 
Latitude - The sun's rays are strongest at the equator, where the sun is most directly overhead and UV 
rays must travel the least distance through the atmosphere. Ozone also is naturally thinner in the tropics 
compared to the mid- and high-latitudes, so there is less ozone to absorb the UV radiation as it passes 
through the atmosphere. At higher latitudes the sun is lower in the sky, so UV rays must travel a greater 
distance through ozone-rich portions of the atmosphere and, in turn, expose those latitudes to less UV 
radiation.  
 
Altitude - UV intensity increases with altitude because there is less atmosphere to absorb the damaging 
rays. Thus, when you go to higher altitudes, your risk of overexposure increases.  
 
Weather Conditions - Cloud cover reduces UV levels, but not completely. Depending on the thickness of 
the cloud cover, it is possible to burn—and increase your risk of long-term skin and eye damage—on a 
cloudy summer day, even if it does not feel very warm.  
 
Reflection - Some surfaces, such as snow, sand, grass, or water can reflect much of the UV radiation 
that reaches them. Because of this reflection, UV intensity can be deceptively high even in shaded areas.. 
 
For a complete guide to UV exposure, read the EPA's brochure on the subject.  Clicking on this link will 
open a new window.  Please close it when you are finished reading the PDF file.  
 
Internet Addresses of Linked Sites 
The Sun, UV, and You (EPA): http://www.epa.gov/sunwise/doc/sunuvu.pdf 
 
Ozone vs. UV Index  
Activity  
 
As we can see, there are several factors other than ozone that affect the amount of UV radiation found at 
the Earth's surface.  Therefore, if we wish to study the relationship between stratospheric ozone and UV 
radiation, we will need to find some way to hold these other factors constant.  In most areas of the world, 
this will prove extremely daunting.  By restricting ourselves to one location to do our evaluation, we will be 
fixing the altitude.  However, this will be about the only thing that we will fix.  At no locations will the Sun 
always be at the same angle every day; at almost all, the Sun's angle will vary throughout the entire day.  
Outside of desert locations, the weather will make day-to-day measurements highly variable.  Even 
something as simple as the local reflectivity can vary radically, as foliage changes color or new dust gets 
deposited. 
 
With this in mind, there is one location that would better than most others to carry out such a study: the 
South Pole.  While the angle of the Sun’s rays does change throughout the year, it is constant throughout 
the day (the South Pole experiences a 6 month period of daylight followed by a 6 month period of night as 
the Sun makes a 360 degree circle around the horizon each day at the same angle above the horizon).  
The South Pole is also in the middle of a very arid desert, getting less than an inch of precipitation a 
year.  And with a landscape that is only snow and ice, the albedo (reflectivity) is extremely constant.  The 
last reason to use the South Pole to do our study is that we have about 5 years' worth of UV Index and 
stratospheric ozone data to use from this location for our study. 
 
Choosing Dates  
 
You will be examining data from the South Pole over several sequential years (1996 - 2003) for this 
activity. It is important to remember that the Sun is either below the horizon or just above the horizon for 
much of the year in this location.  Since we are going to be measuring the ultraviolet radiation coming 
from the Sun, it is best to investigate dates during which the Sun is well above the horizon and shining on 
a flat, horizontal surface.  The best times for this occur between November 1 and February 14 of each 
year.  Your instructor might want to assign you certain dates.  If not, it is advisable to use dates from each 
year that fall within this time frame.   
 
As mentioned above, one of the factors that affects the amount of 
UV radiation that is measured at the Earth's surface is the angle 
at which sunlight strikes the Earth.  The picture at the right shows 
sunlight (yellow) coming through the Earth's atmosphere at two 
different angles and striking UV detectors.  You will note that the 
greater the angle θ, the farther the sunlight must travel through 
the ozone layer (blue), which effectively makes the ozone layer 
thicker than it actually is.  You will also note that the steeper 
angle corresponds to the sunlight's energy being spread over a 
greater area.  Thus, the detector will measure a smaller amount 
of UV radiation, as the spreading of the energy means less will 
strike the detector's surface. 
 
Fig. 3: Diagram of sunlight striking the 
Earth at two different angles 
 
 
One way to take this effect of the sunlight's angle of incidence into consideration is to limit your data to 
when the Sun is at the same position in the sky.  You can do this by selecting the same set of days from 
each year's worth of data.  For instance, if you only look at data from February 1st in any of the years 
between 1996 and 2003, then you can be assured that the Sun will always be at the same angle of 
incidence.  Since the angle of the Sun is not that much different on January 31st or February 2nd, you 
could also consider using data from these days each year.  However, doing so will severally limit the 
amount of data that you can use in this activity. 
 
Another way to take this affect into consideration is to account for the variances in angles mathematically. 
 If the sunlight is striking the ozone layer at an angle θ from the vertical, and the ozone layer has a 
thickness D, then the sunlight is actually traveling through an amount of ozone that is given by the 
formula 
 
Ozone amount = D/cos θ 
 
At the same time, the energy of the sunlight is being spread out over a greater area than it would be if it 
were striking the Earth at a normal angle.  The detector, which is sitting flat, will measure an intensity of 
radiation that is reduced because of this.  If we let I be the intensity of radiation measured by the detector, 
the actual intensity of the sunlight is given by 
 
Actual intensity = I/cos θ 
 
Thus, we can take into account the effects of the sunlight coming in from various angles by multiplying all 
measured ozone thicknesses and UV intensities by the same factor, which is the reciprocal of the cosine 
of the angle that the sunlight strikes the ground with respect to the vertical.  Using the position of the Sun 
on the various days as seen from the South Pole, we have created a table of these factors for each day 
for you to use. 
 
UV and Ozone Databases 
 
The data that we are going to use this week comes from two different sources.  The stratospheric ozone 
data comes from the NASA Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) satellite.  This satellite has 
recorded the ozone thickness over the entire almost every day for the last 7 years.  Luckily, the friendly 
people at NASA have built a nice search engine that allows one to extract ozone thickness data from any 
location at any time.  This search engine is found at the address 
 
http://toms.gsfc.nasa.gov/teacher/ozone_overhead.html  
 
The UV data comes from an NSF-sponsored monitoring unit at the Scott-Amundson station at the South 
Pole. Biospherical Instrument, Inc. in San Diego has developed an interactive database for the NSF that 
allows one to retrieve UV Index data for this site. This database can be found at  
 
http://www.biospherical.com/nsf/student/CSVRequest.asp  
 
Clicking on either of these links will bring up a window that has the interface required to retrieve the data 
from each site.  From these interfaces, we are going to want to retrieve ozone thickness and UV Index 
data for dates that you have decided upon.  To do this, follow the directions below.   
 
Retrieving UV Index Data (http://www.biosperical.com/nsf/student/CSVRequest.asp): 
1. Select your Start Date.  
2.  Select your End Date . 
3. Select the South Pole as your site from the pull-down menu. 
4. Select the Irradiance Data that you want.  Choose the UV Index data only (ozone does not absorb 
UVA). 
5. Select "Retrieve Only Noontime Scans".  This will ensure that the data was taken at the same time 
every day. 
6. Click on Submit. 
Retrieving Ozone Thickness Data (http://toms.gsfc.nasa.gov/teacher/ozone_overhead.html): 
1. Enter -90 for the Latitude and 0 for the Longitude.  
2.  Select a set of Year, Month, and Day that corresponds to your first UV Index data point. 
3. Click on Submit, and write down the value for the Ozone Thickness in Dobson Units. 
4. Click on the Back button at the top of the browser to take you back to the first page. 
5. Repeat with the same Latitude and Longitude, but a different Year, Month, and Day. 
   
 
Activity Sheet Directions  
 
Before entering you data onto the activity sheet, be sure to multiply both the UV Index data and the 
Ozone Thickness data by the appropriate factor for that day (see factor table).  Enter the UV data (from 
the NSF site) and the Ozone thickness data (from the NASA TOMS satellite) in the appropriate cells in 
the table.  Once all the data has been entered, make a plot of UV Index vs. Stratospheric Ozone 
Thickness. As plotting requires both measurements for a given day, you cannot plot days where you only 
have one measurement (either the UV Index or Stratospheric Ozone Thickness) for that day. If ozone 
does absorb ultraviolet radiation, then this data should show that the UV Index decreases as the ozone 
thickness increases.  This will be seen from a plot of your data.  
 
 ESA 21: Environmental Science Activities Activity Sheet Ozone: Stratospheric Ozone 
 
 
Name:       Professor: 
 
 
Using the two databases of information from the website, create a table of data of UV Index versus 
stratospheric ozone thickness 
 
Date Factor UV Ozone Date Factor UV Ozone Date Factor UV Ozone 
            
            
            
            
            
            
            
            
            
            
            
            
            
            
 
Using the data in your table above, make a plot of the UV Index versus the stratospheric ozone 
thickness.  Use the space below are attach the graph to this sheet.  Be certain to label the plot 
appropriately, and answer the analysis questions when you are complete. 
 
Analysis: 
 
Describe the relationship between the UV Index and the stratospheric ozone thickness.  Explain why this 
is or isn’t the relationship you expected.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Over the last several decades, there has been a measured thinning of the stratospheric ozone layer over 
most of the world.  If the relationship that you found is correct, what would this mean for ecosystems 
worldwide (what would you expect to be occurring in these ecosystems)? 
 


Stratospheric Ozone

http://esa21.kennesaw.edu/activities/stratosphericozone/stratospheric.pdf

Stratospheric Ozone

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