Researchers from Harvard University who studied the ozone layer over the United States found that thunderstorms send water vapour into the stratosphere which is normally drier than a desert and pose a threat to the protective ozone layer, 'The New York Times' reported.
The study was published in the journal Science.
Thinning of the ozone layer over the US during summers could mean an increase in ultraviolet exposure for millions of people and a rise in the incidence of skin cancer, the researchers were quoted by the paper as saying.
"It's the union between ozone loss and climate change that is really at the heart of this," said James G Anderson, an atmospheric scientist and the lead author of the study.
For years, Anderson said, he and other atmospheric scientists were careful to keep the two concepts separate.
"Now, they