At a Glance

It could be fully repaired by the middle or end of this century, a new study says.The gap forms in late August or early September and expands until it reaches its largest annual size in October.

We might be mere years from finally fixing a huge hole in the ozone layer, according to a new study.

For decades, a large hole has opened in the ozone layer over Antarctica each year. The gap forms in late August or early September - spring in the Southern Hemisphere - and expands until it reaches its largest annual size in October.

But a study published Thursday in the journal Science , based on studies performed on the hole each September since 2000, and it could be fully repaired by the middle or end of this century.

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Researcher Susan Solomon,an atmospheric chemist at MIT, proved in 1986 that chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) weakened the ozone layerover Antarctica. Made of chlorine and bromine, CFCs were found in many household objects until they were banned by the Montreal Protocol in 1987.

"This is a reminder that when the world gets together, ," Solomon told Gizmodo. "I think we should all congratulate ourselves on a job well done."

The scientists chose to study the month of September because there was more consistent weather in that month over the span they analyzed than October. An eruption of the Calbuco volcano last October led to a much larger ozone hole than usual for that time of year, so it would have affected their data in a way that wasn't consistent with the other information they'd found, Solomon told Gizmodo.

The study did not mention how short-term weather variations impact the ozone hole, but it's more important to focus on the long-term changes with the hole, according to the study's authors. And the overall key takeaway from their analysis is that things are getting better over Antarctica.

"If you use the medical analogy, first the patient was getting worse and worse, and then the patient is stabilized, and now, the really encouraging thing, is that the patient ," Solomon told the Washington Post.

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