The Ozone Layer

The hole in the ozone layer was first discovered by members of the British Antarctic Survey and reported in the scientific journal, Nature, in 1985. At first they did not believe their own ground-based observations. Even NASA failed to confirm their findings — at first. Then scientists at NASA discovered that they had programmed their computers to remove "wild" points for which there were no obvious explanations.

When officials retrieved the data from the storage bin it became evident that the hole had been growing ever since 1978. In effect, scientists were removing evidence of ozone destruction that was taking place over their heads.

The discovery of the hole had a profound effect on children. Most children heard about the discovery accidentally as a result of channel-flicking on television. They interpreted it as a sign of game-over for humans on Earth. A student in Pennyburn Primary School in Kilwinning, Scotland, wrote this poem after Johnny Biosphere visited his school in 1987: