Antarctic ozone layer is gradually healing, researchers find

The Antarctic ozone layer, which shields the Earth from harmful ultraviolet rays, shows encouraging signs that it’s beginning to heal, according to research published in the journal Science.

Scientists credit the healing to an international policy set nearly two decades ago that cut the production of ozone-destroying chemicals. That agreement — the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer — called for the phase-out of substances including chlorofluorocarbons and halons, once present in refrigerators, aerosol cans and dry cleaning chemicals…READ MORE