Flying and Radiation Risk

Reported July 2009

Hampton, Va. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Some careers have occupational hazards, but airline crews and frequent fliers may be exposed to hidden flight risks and not even know it.

Joseph Tremper is happy to be home working on his garden, but as a frequent flier, time at home is rare. Much of his days are spent in the sky.

"I travel about three out of four weeks a month," Tremper told Ivanhoe.

Flying a lot can have regular risks, but space physicists say many travelers and airline crews are at higher risk of radiation exposure during flights that fly high over the poles.

"The frequent flyer is susceptible to more radiation in particularly high latitudes," Chris Mertens, Ph.D., a space physicist at the NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., said.

We're all exposed to some radiation every day, but the earth's atmosphere shields us from most of it. At higher latitudes, near the poles, and altitudes above 30,000 feet, the earth's protection is weaker, putting flight crews and passengers at risk. Now researchers have a new model that predicts the amount of radiation in space and how much radiation reaches earth during solar storm activity.

"The model shows the real time radiation exposure levels that is received from the surface of the earth," Dr. Mertens explained.

During a solar storm, radiation levels increase. This model shows high levels of radiation in red near the earth's poles. The new model helps alert crews of radiation risk in flight, so pilots can take measures to avoid it

"If you descend one or two kilometers in altitude, then you can significantly reduce the radiation exposure," said Dr. Mertens.

Scientists hope to make radiation prediction forecasts similar to local weather forecasts. Right now, Joseph hopes his travels will keep him safe and focused on fun.

"My favorite part of traveling is that I get to see lots of interesting places," Tremper said.

The most susceptible person to radiation on high altitude and latitude flights is an unborn baby in the first trimester. In Europe, it's mandatory that flight crews are educated about radiation. There are no regulations in the U.S.

The American Geophysical Union, the American Meteorological Society, and the American Physical Society contributed to the information contained in the TV portion of this report.

Click here to Go Inside This Science or contact:

Katherine E. Lorentz
SSAI/NASA Langley Research Center
Hampton, VA 23681-2199
Office: (757) 864-4052
katherine.e.lorentz@nasa.gov

American Meteorological Society
Boston, MA 02108-3693
(617) 227-2425
http://www.ametsoc.org

Peter Weiss
American Geophysical Union
Washington, DC 20009-1277
(800) 966-2481
http://www.agu.org
pweiss@agu.org

James Riordon, Media Relations
American Physical Society
College Park, MD
(301) 209-3238
http://www.aps.org
Riordon@aps.org

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