Extreme Ultraviolet Exposure

Duval leaned back in the office chair, feeling the plastic poking through the worn fabric back. He tapped idly at the chiptunes soundtrack playing on his phone. His eyes fluttered, trying their best to stay awake.

"Just another typical Tuesday," he muttered, smiling faintly as he conquered another level in his retro-futuristic city builder game.

He glanced quickly at the main display on the weather station's monitors, a wall of constantly dreaming data and sensor readings.

He felt a quick flicker of unease. A UV index reading of 20? Impossible. The maximum theoretical value was 10, a number that was rarely seen outside of a summer day in the Caribbean.

He squinted, double-checking the sensor feed. No, that wasn't a glitch. The primary and secondary sensors had just been calibrated a few weeks ago and they both agreed, screaming the same terrifying number.

A jolt of adrenaline snapped Duval to action. He knew enough about atmospheric physics to understand the implications. A UV index of 20 meant that the ozone layer was catastrophically compromised. The sun's unfiltered radiation would turn into a lethal torrent. He didn't have time to ponder the how or why.