Question

Why is Ozone not a Greenhouse Gas?

Answer 1

Greenhouse gas is a gas, which has the property of absorbing infrared radiation emitted from the earth’s surface and capable of reradiating it back to the surface of earth, thereby contributing to the greenhouse effect. Main greenhouse gases present in the earth’s atmosphere are carbon dioxide, water vapor, nitrous oxide and methane.

Complete answer:
Ozone is highly pungent and reactive. It is composed of three oxygen atoms. It has a pungent smell and looks pale blue. It is both a human made and natural product present in the earth’s atmosphere. Human made ozone is mostly harmful, while naturally formed ozone is mostly helpful.
Though ozone is technically a greenhouse gas, it is termed harmful or helpful depending on the location in the atmosphere of the earth. Generally, ozone occurs in higher concentration in higher elevation of the atmosphere (stratosphere). It spreads evenly by forming a layer. It blocks the UV radiation, which is harmful to animals and plants on earth.
But, ozone present in lower elevations of the atmosphere (troposphere), it is harmful to health and contributes towards global warming.
However, the benefit of ozone outweighs its contribution towards greenhouse. In addition, quantification of ozone’s greenhouse potency is a difficult one since it is not present in uniform concentrations across the world. Hence, it is not included in the greenhouse gas category.

Note:
Depletion of ozone layer leads to entry of harmful UV rays into the earth’s atmosphere, which can cause skin cancer and drastic change in climate. Ozone impacts life in both bad and good ways. Low amount of ozone in the atmosphere can cause coughing, sore throat, shortness of breath, wheezing as it traps the air in alveoli causing muscles to constrict.