Nighttime view over the Gulf Coast Sep 16, 2025

Nighttime view over the Gulf Coast

What do invisible gases, vintage hairspray and satellites have in common? They all played a role in one of the greatest environmental comebacks in history. Seen from 362 kilometres above, the Gulf Coast glows like a constellation—clusters of light scattered across the dark. But what truly makes this view possible can"t be seen: the ozone layer, silently shielding everything below from the sun"s ultraviolet rays. By the 1980s, that shield was thinning fast—damaged by chemicals once used in refrigeration and aerosol products. The solution? A global pact. The Montreal Protocol, signed in 1987, led to a swift phase-out of ozone-depleting substances. Today, satellites show that the hole over Antarctica is shrinking. Scientists believe it could be fully healed by mid-century.

© Stocktrek Images/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Sep 16, 2023Splügen Pass, Switzerland
Sep 16, 2024Wallabies at sunrise, Australia

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Aug 24, 2023Shark Fin Cove, California, USA
Jul 19, 2024A young jaguar, Pantanal, Brazil
Jul 25, 2025Colourful houses of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
May 12, 2024Guanaco mother and baby
Oct 13, 2025Waterfall at Wimbachklamm Gorge, Bavaria, Germany
Aug 2, 2024Saint-François, Guadeloupe, Caribbean
Feb 16, 2024Pyrrhuloxia bird
Dec 28, 2023Humpback whale
Nov 30, 2025Christmas market in Leipzig, Germany
Sep 6, 2025Rufous hummingbird
Jan 31, 2025Plains zebras, South Africa
Dec 19, 2024Sibiu Christmas Market, Romania
Nov 13, 2023Serra de Tramuntana, Balearic Islands, Majorca, Spain
Oct 19, 2024Temple of Hathor, Dendera Temple Complex, Qena, Egypt
Apr 26, 2025Bruce Peninsula National Park, Ontario, Canada
May 15, 2024The Blue City of Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India
Nov 16, 2025A traboule in Lyon, France
Mar 4, 2026Purple crocus flowers, Seven Rila Lakes, Bulgaria
Jan 17, 2025Brown pelican, San Diego, California, United States
Nov 20, 2024Pont de pierre, Bordeaux, France
Mar 17, 2024St. Finians Bay, County Kerry, Ireland
Nov 17, 2025Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, United States
Jul 24, 2025Family of ashy woodswallows
Nov 29, 2023Schwerin Castle on Lake Schwerin, Germany
Nov 15, 2025Irohazaka Road, Nikko, Tochigi, Japan
Dec 11, 2024Tre Cime di Lavaredo, Italy
Oct 3, 2025Glen Brittle, Isle of Skye, Scotland
Jan 23, 2024Maldives
Feb 19, 2026Dragons Eye, Uttakleiv Beach, Norway
Apr 19, 2024Ring of Brodgar, Orkney, Scotland