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Monday, November 9, 2026

The File

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Earth · Monday, November 9, 2026

Antarctic ozone hole ranks seventh largest in 48 years, NASA says

The File desk · Nov. 9, 2026, 6:46 a.m. ET

Confirmed1 primary sourcesAdded 6:46 a.m. ET, Nov. 9

Status

Confirmed as NASA's reporting. The Earth Observatory page, dated November 9, 2026, says the 2026 Antarctic ozone hole ranked seventh largest by area in 48 years of monitoring and was not as deep as other large holes on record.
A map centered on the South Pole shows ozone concentrations on September 18, 2026. Areas at and below 220 Dobson units, the threshold that defines the ozone hole, appear in yellow, orange, and red over Antarctica.
NASA Earth Observatory image by Lauren Dauphin, using data from NASA Ozone Watch. September 18, 2026. Source. Public domain. A work of the U.S. government, NASA Earth Observatory.
The 2026 Antarctic ozone hole ranked seventh largest by area in 48 years of monitoring, NASA said, though it was not as deep as other large holes on record. The word hole is not literal, because no place is empty of ozone.1
Scientists use the word for the area where ozone falls below 220 Dobson units. Before 1979, they had not seen ozone cross that line. The ozone layer above us absorbs ultraviolet light that can damage DNA in plants and animals, including people.1
NASA measured the season by the hole's mean size from September 7 to October 13. The hole covered the most area on September 18, the day shown on NASA's map. An unusually strong polar vortex, the ring of wind around the pole, created conditions for depletion over a large area.1
The 1987 is a treaty phasing out chemicals that destroy ozone. NASA says scientists estimate the Antarctic ozone layer will return to 1980 levels in the 2070s.1
Why it matters (Estimate). Estimate. A thinner ozone layer lets more ultraviolet light through to people, plants, and animals. NASA's ranking says this year's hole is still among the largest, and its recovery estimate is the 2070s, not this decade. The map is one day, September 18, not the whole season.
The 2026 measurements come from the ozone instrument on the NOAA-20 satellite. NASA's Earth Observatory page is dated November 9, 2026.1
How we know

Notes

  1. 1.NASA Earth Observatory, Ozone Hole Reaches Its 2026 Maximum, dated Nov 09, 2026. "The ozone hole ranked seventh largest by area in 48 years of monitoring, but it was not as deep as other large holes on record." Scientists define the hole as ozone below 220 Dobson units. "As the images show, the word hole isn't literal; no place is empty of ozone." Mean size from September 7 to October 13. Map of September 18, "the day of its annual maximum area." "an unusually strong Antarctic polar vortex created ideal conditions for ozone depletion over a large area." 2026 data from OMPS on NOAA-20. "The global recognition of the destructive potential of CFCs led to the 1987 , a treaty phasing out the consumption and production of ozone-depleting chemicals." "about 80 percent of the chlorine in the stratosphere today comes from human, not natural, sources." "the Antarctic ozone layer will return to 1980 levels in the 2070s." Images by Lauren Dauphin, using data from NASA Ozone Watch. Retrieved 6:26 a.m. ET, Nov. 9. https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/ozone-hole-reaches-its-2026-maximum/

What is still unknown or disputed

  • A single depth figure for 2026. The page says the hole was not as deep as other large holes and does not print this year's minimum in Dobson units in the passage this desk used.
  • Whether the hole has closed since October 13. The page is about the seasonal maximum.

Primary sources

Every claim in this story is drawn from the documents below. If a fetch failed, that is recorded on the card.

  1. Source 1

    Ozone Hole Reaches Its 2026 Maximum

    NASA Earth Observatory · November 9, 2026

    The 2026 hole ranked seventh largest by area in 48 years of monitoring and was not as deep as other large holes. Mean size September 7 to October 13. Maximum area September 18. Recovery to 1980 levels expected in the 2070s.

    https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/ozone-hole-reaches-its-2026-maximum/