Articles | Volume 26, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-3621-2026
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-3621-2026
Research article
 | 
11 Mar 2026
Research article |  | 11 Mar 2026

The impact of rocket-emitted chlorine on stratospheric ozone

Yuwen Li, Wuhu Feng, John M. C. Plane, Tijian Wang, and Martyn P. Chipperfield

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Cited articles

Brown, T. F. M.: Rocket Launch Emission 2019 Dataset, Zenodo [data set], https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6499776, 2024. a
Brown, T. F. M., Bannister, M. T., and Revell, L. E.: Envisioning a sustainable future for space launches: a review of current research and policy, J. Roy. Soc. New Zeal., 54, 273–289, https://doi.org/10.1080/03036758.2022.2152467, 2024a. a
Brown, T. F. M., Bannister, M. T., Revell, L. E., Sukhodolov, T., and Eugene, R.: Worldwide Rocket Launch Emissions 2019: An Inventory for Use in Global Models, Earth and Space Science, 11, e2024EA003668, https://doi.org/10.1029/2024EA003668, 2024b. a, b, c, d, e, f
Chipperfield, M. P. and Bekki, S.: Opinion: Stratospheric ozone – depletion, recovery and new challenges, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 2783–2802, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-2783-2024, 2024. a
Chipperfield, M. P., Dhomse, S. S., Feng, W., McKenzie, R. L., Velders, G., and Pyle, J. A.: Quantifying the ozone and ultraviolet benefits already achieved by the Montreal Protocol, Nat. Commun., 6, 7233, https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms8233, 2015. a
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The space industry is growing rapidly, but its environmental effects remain uncertain. We used a global chemistry-climate model to study how chlorine released by rocket launches could affect the ozone layer and its recovery from past depletion. Even with large growth in launches, global ozone loss remains small but could locally slow the healing of the ozone layer. These findings highlight the need to consider rocket emissions in future environmental policies.
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