The ozone hole over Antarctica this year reached its smallest peak size since 1988, scientists say. Measurements by U.S. space and atmospheric agencies showed that the hole’s maximum size for the year, reached in September, was 7.6 million square miles (19.7 million sq. kms), or 1.3 million square miles smaller than last year’s peak and 2.3 million square miles smaller than the 2015 maximum. Such news likely heartens residents of the southern tip of South America who are concerned that added ultraviolet radiation reaching the earth’s surface due to thinning of the protective ozone layer could cause them problems ranging from elevated skin-cancer rates to irregular plant growth. Shrinking of the ozone hole also validates the Montreal Protocol, the international agreement forged in 1987... [Log in to read more]