Ozone concentrations obtained with the technique of solar occultation from the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM)/Ultraviolet Spectrometer and Polarimeter (UVSP) and Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS)/Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment II (SAGE II) satellite-borne instruments are compared in the latitude regions of 5¿ to 15¿ north and south for the lower mesosphere (53--68 km) for 1985--1989, the period when both instruments were operational. The estimated trends are all positive signifying increasing ozone. At 55 km in the northern region they are 0.60(¿0.47)%/year for SAGE II and 2.56(¿0.61)%/year for SMM/UVSP during the 1985--1989 period. At 60 km the trends are 0.38(¿1.06)%/year for SAGE II and 1.63(¿0.56)%/year for SMM/UVSP. Corresponding numbers at 55 km in the southern region are 1.23(¿0.82)%/year for SAGE II and 2.38(¿0.62)%/year for SMM/UVSP. At 60 km the trends are 1.34(¿1.01)%/year for SAGE II and 2.14(¿0.56)%/year for SMM/UVSP. At 65 km, where only SMM/UVSP data are used, estimated trends are 0.92(¿0.74)%/year in the northern region and 2.59(¿0.92)%/year in the southern region. Theory predicts that the increase in solar radiation between 1985 and 1989 should enhance ozone by 1.5%. If temperature feedback is included in the model, then ozone is predicted to decrease. These figures are smaller than the observed 5 to 10% increase. A long-term temperature decrease will also contribute to an ozone increase. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1996