A new study has reported Earth was hit by the highest level of ultraviolet (UV) radiation detected on the planet in 2003.
The UV rays were recorded in the Andes mountain range in Bolivia, 1,500 miles from the equator, and were found to be at levels higher than those considered to be harmful for life both on land and in the water, according to Science World Report.
"These record-setting levels were not measured in Antarctica, where ozone holes have been a recurring problem for decades," said Nathalie Cabrol, the leader of the study. "This is in the tropics, in an area where there are small towns and villages."
A world-record UV index, which estimates UV rays of the sun, of 43.3 was found at the Licancabur volcano in Bolivia on December 29, 2003. UB-B levels were measured with dosimeters, tools used to monitor radiation. The dosimeters found that the levels were in the 20s before Dec. 29th and in the 30s in January 2004, CBS News reported.
UV rays increase to extreme heights in the Andes for several reasons, such as the intensity of the tropical sun, high altitude and ozone levels that are naturally low. However, the research team believes certain factors combined on Dec. 29th from atmospheric conditions to deplete ozone levels, which protect people from cancerous UV radiation from the sun, Maine News reported.
The team also believes the ozone may have been depleted by fires in the Amazon, seasonal thunderstorms over the Andes, and a huge solar flare from the sun two weeks before the UV rays hit the record level, CBS News reported. They researchers have not been able to determine if there have been similar peaks in UV levels since December 2003, or if there have been high hits of UV-B radiation over other volcanoes in the Andes.
"We need a lot more data to answer this question," Cabrol said.
The original reason for the researchers being in the Andes at the time was to study high-elevation lakes to find environments on Earth that were similar to Mars and figure out how life evolves in extreme environments. The team studied the summit lake on the Licancabur volcano due to its similarities with Gusev Crater on the Red Planet, where NASA's Mars rover Spirit landed in 2004. It wasn't until years later that they discovered a huge increase in UV levels picked up by their equipment. Cabrol said the team wanted to return Licancabur to get more data, but was stopped by political instability in Bolivia.
Cabrol believes the researchers could use a UV monitoring program to find more information on extreme UV levels at high altitudes and better ways to protect people living in the Altiplano from radiation, CBS News reported.
"If we had a way of monitoring these events and better understanding [of] how they are created, then we could develop an alarm system so people could stay inside and be protected," Cabrol said.
The study was published on Tuesday in the journal Frontiers in Environmental Science.
