The ozone hole over Antarctica is slowly recovering, according to NASA & NOAA's long-term record. This year’s ozone hole was the 5th-smallest on record, reaching an annual maximum extent of 8.83 million square miles on Sept. 9, 2025. What we call the ozone hole is an annual thinning of Earth’s ozone layer over Antarctica every September. NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) researchers monitor the growth and breakup of the ozone hole with instruments aboard the Aura, S

A mysterious 'hole' larger than Maryland has reappeared in the middle of Antarctica after 42 years. | Insider Science

Substantial Antarctic Ozone Hole in 2021 The 2021 Antarctic ozone hole reached its maximum area on October 7 and ranks as the 13th largest since 1979. Scientists from NASA and NOAA reported that this year’s ozone hole developed similarly to last year’s: A colder than usual Southern Hemisphere winter led to a deep and larger-than-average ozone hole that will likely persist into November or December. “This is a large ozone hole because of the colder-than-average 2021 stratospheric conditions, and