polar stratospheric cloud

[ poh-ler strat-uh-sfer-ik kloud, ‐-sfeer‐ ]

noun

, Meteorology.

1. an iridescent cloud in the winter polar stratosphere, as high as 15.5 miles (25 kilometers) above the earth: in both the Antarctic and the Arctic, these clouds contribute to ozone depletion by converting benign forms of chlorine into ozone-destroying forms and by eliminating the nitrogen compounds that curb the destructive effects of chlorine. : PSC

Word History and Origins

Origin of polar stratospheric cloud¹

First recorded in 1980–85

Example Sentences

Because of the height and temperature needed this cloud is also known as Polar Stratospheric Cloud.

From BBC

It turned out that the models lacked a key ingredient: by considering only gas-phase atmospheric chemistry, they overlooked the activation of ozone-destroying chlorine species that occurs on and within polar stratospheric cloud particles at extremely low temperatures11,12.

From Nature