The visible spectrometer on the Solar Mesosphere Explorer measured stratospheric NO2 in the 24- to 40-km region. In September and October 1986 the spatial density of the measurements was increased over Antarctica in order to examine the NO2 change during the period of the ''ozone hole.'' These measurements are compared with 1985 austral spring observations, with northern polar spring measurements for both years, and with model results. A polar low in NO2 is seen between 10 and 24 mbar. The geographic extent of the low decreases as hours of sunlight increase, in marked contrast to the behavior of the total ozone column during the same period. The latitude and time dependence of the NO2 in similar for both years, and during the same season, in the northern hemisphere. Comparison of measurements and model imply that much of the odd nitrogen is converted to HNO3 during the polar night. Observed vertical profiles and comparison to measurements from the ground indicate that the bulk of the NO2 column lies above 25 km. The observed behavior does not appear to be anomalous when compared to simple model calculations, indicating no obvious connection between the polar stratospheric NOx above 24 km and the development of the ozone hole below 24 km.