Nighttime view over the Gulf Coast Sep 16, 2025

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
Sept 16, 2026Polar bear cubs playing in Svalbard, Norway

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Oct 7, 2025Autumn colours below Mount Sneffels near Ridgway, Colorado, United States
Aug 29, 2024Castellfollit de la Roca, Catalonia, Spain
Jan 3, 2026Staubbach Falls at Lauterbrunnen, Canton of Bern, Switzerland
Mar 27, 2024Tea plantation near Munnar, India
Jul 28, 2024Skåne County, Sweden
Jan 20, 2026Gentoo penguin, Petermann Island, Antarctica
Jul 17, 2025Lavender fields in Plateau de Valensole, France
May 20, 2024Bee tending a honeycomb
Oct 2, 2023Verdon Gorge, France
Dec 4, 2025Cheetah in Maasai Mara
Aug 31, 2024Sahara, Algeria
Dec 9, 2024Two guanacos, Torres del Paine National Park, Chile
Aug 11, 2025Village of Santa Maddalena, Dolomites, Italy
Jun 17, 2025Maritime forest in Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia, United States
Nov 12, 2023Mallard ducks
Sep 14, 2024Rapa Nui National Park, Easter Island, Chile
Apr 10, 2026Two young red foxes at Karula National Park, Estonia
Jun 27, 2024Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence
Oct 3, 2025Glen Brittle, Isle of Skye, Scotland
Jan 18, 2025Dunes at White Sands National Park, New Mexico
Jun 22, 2024Amazon rainforest, Brazil
Jan 7, 2025Moeraki Boulders, South Island, New Zealand
Jul 26, 2025Mangrove trees, Walakiri Beach, island of Sumba, Indonesia
Mar 30, 2025Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, Australia
Feb 3, 2024Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute, Venice, Italy
May 12, 2025An iris garden in Tokyo, Japan
Mar 12, 2024Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, USA
Feb 23, 2024Haghartsin Monastery, Armenia
Oct 22, 2023Astoria-Megler Bridge, Oregon, USA
June 30, 2026Giraffes at sunset in the Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya