The Difference Between Radiation and Radioactivity

Radioactivity and radiation are often used interchangeably, but they describe different (yet related) processes.

But before going into this difference, it's useful to understand what atoms are and a few concepts about how they behave.

An atom is the smallest particle that can be described as a chemical. Smaller particles aren't chemicals in the same way that wheels, windscreens and seats aren't cars – they are parts of them, but you need a few to make the whole.

At the centre of each atom is a nucleus, containing a number of protons (positively charged particles). The number of protons determines what chemical the atom is. All carbon nuclei contain six protons – it is what defines them as carbon nuclei. Five protons would be a boron atom, seven protons a nitrogen atom.

The nucleus also contains a number of neutrons (particle with no charge). Atoms of the same chemical can have different numbers of neutrons. Some 99% of carbon atoms have six neutrons, when added to the six protons this gives an atomic mass of 12.

Some carbon atoms have more or fewer neutrons – seven neutrons makes carbon-13 and eight for carbon-14. The nuclei of carbon-12 and carbon-13 are stable, but carbon-14 is radioactive and is the basis of radiocarbon dating.

Atoms of the same chemical with different numbers of neutrons are known as isotopes.

Surrounding the nucleus are very small negatively charged particles called electrons. These are held in place (called orbitals) by their attraction to the positively charged nucleus. An atom contains as many electrons as protons.

Adding or removing an electron from the atom results in a charged particle, called an ion. Ions can react very differently to atoms. A chlorine atom is very reactive and dangerous; a chloride ion is part of table salt. This becomes important when talking about ionising radiation later.

So, what is radioactivity?

Radioactivity is the term given to the breaking-up (decay) or rearrangement of an atom's nucleus. Decay occurs naturally and spontaneously to unstable nuclei. This instability is usually caused by a mismatch between the number of protons and neutrons.

Radioactive decay can occur in several ways, with the more common ones being:
spontaneous fission: also known as "splitting the atom" as the nucleus breaks into two parts:

neutron release: a neutron is ejected from the core of the atom
alpha decay: the nucleus releases an alpha particle (a helium-4 nucleus) consisting of two neutrons and two protons

beta decay: the nucleus ejects an electron (or a positron). Note: this is not the same as an electron being removed from orbitals around the nucleus

gamma decay: the protons and neutrons within the nucleus rearrange into a more stable form, and energy is emitted as a gamma ray.

Neutron release, alpha and beta decay are all accompanied by the release of a particle. It is the particle (or the gamma ray in gamma decay) that is the "radiation" associated with radioactivity.

What is a 'half-life'?

Let's say we have 4,000 coins and we want to flip them all, which will take (for the sake of the argument) one minute. All of those that land heads are thrown away. By the law of averages, we should have 2,000 coins (half) remaining.

If we then take another minute to flip all of those coins and discard the heads, we will be left with 1,000 coins. And again, taking another minute to flip the 1,000 coins, we will be left with 500 coins.

You'll notice we take the same length of time to flip all the coins, no matter how many of them there are.

In the case of radioactivity, this time is not an artificial constraint, but a fundamental property of each nucleus – that in a given time, it has a 50/50 chance of spontaneously decaying. The name given to the length of time it takes for half the atoms in a sample to decay is called the "half-life".

The half-life of an isotope is the same for all nuclei of that type (all carbon-14 nuclei have a half-life of about 5,750 years and all carbon-15 nuclei have a half life of about 2.5 seconds).

If we perform the coin flip ten times we will be left with four coins – one thousandth of the starting number. This is important because it is considered that after ten half-lives there is a negligible amount of material remaining.

If a material has a long half-life (such as uranium-238's 4.5 billion years half-life – about the age of the Earth), it is not very radioactive. A material with a short half-life (polonium-210's 138 days) is very radioactive.

What's the difference between radioactivity and radiation?

As we have seen, radioactive decay is a property of a particular nucleus. In comparison, radiation is a possible consequence of many processes, not just radioactivity.

Radiation is the term given to a travelling particle or wave and can be split into three main types:
non-ionising radiation: essentially the low-energy parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. This includes all the light you see, radio waves (also known as microwaves – as in the oven) and infrared ("heat" radiation). Ultra violet falls into the high energy end of this category.
ionising radiation: radiation that can remove an electron from its orbital
neutrons: free neutron particles that can collide with other atoms.

Non-ionising radiation is mostly damaging in obvious ways. Exposure to microwaves or infrared waves causes susceptible materials to heat up. Alternatively, ionising radiation can be less obvious but, by changing an atom into a more reactive ion, can create longer lasting damage.

Ionising radiation falls into two main forms:
high-energy electromagnetic radiation: including X-ray and gamma rays
particle radiation: alpha and beta particles.

These different forms of ionising radiation differ in their capacity to do damage and their ability to penetrate materials.

Ionising electromagnetic radiation
X-rays and gamma rays are penetrating, ionising radiation and are are essentially the same thing. (The difference in terminology is usually that gamma rays come from nuclear decay, while X-rays come from electron orbitals.)

These wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation contain enough energy to push an electron out of its orbit around the atom – yet again forming an ion. They are stopped by very dense materials such as lead or large amounts of earth or concrete.

Particle radiation

Particle radiation is potentially very harmful, but is relatively easy to block.

Alpha particles, with two neutrons and two protons, are essentially helium ions. These can strip the electrons from another atom in order to become helium atoms. Beta particles are simply free electrons that can be captured by atoms just like any other electron.

Luckily, protection from these is reasonably easy. Alpha particles are blocked by a piece of paper, and beta particles by a few millimetres of metal or an equivalent amount of plastic.

Neutrons are more penetrating and so are potentially more dangerous. They cause damage by being captured by the nucleus of an atom. This can cause the atom to break in two (fission) or undergo another decay process (known as transmutation).

In either case, the original atom (say a nitrogen atom) is changed to become a different type of atom (in this case, carbon-14). The new atom will have different chemical properties and therefore could act as a poison, or for building materials change their physical properties.

Neutrons are either slowed down or captured safely by materials such as graphite or compounds containing lots of hydrogen (such as tap water!).

All of these forms of radioactivity and radiation are naturally occurring. They make up what is known as background radiation. The web comic xkcd gives a good visual representation of what those numbers look like.

Radiation Alerts Hits U.S. Cities

A private organization that monitors radiation data from network points across the United States issued email alerts today for two Western U.S. cities, Reno, Nev., and St. George, Utah.

The alerts came from the the Nuclear Emergency Tracking Center, which explains its mission is to provide radiation monitoring information from hundreds of sites in Japan and the U.S., including those run by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The warning pinpointed an area “of concern” in St. George, Utah, where background radiation levels more than doubled today from the typical reading.

In Reno, “the current background radiation level has increased suddenly by more than 200 points from the typical average.”

The report said the “counts per minute” at St. George reach an all-time high of 456, while the average is 222 with a normal deviation of 55.

In Reno, the CPM suddenly surged to 462. The all time high is 542. The average is 279 with a deviation of 56.2.

NETC.com founder Harlan Yother told WND he’s seeing more and more surges of radiation. Levels have risen along the West Coast, then moved east. The movement always follows by two or three days a rise in levels in Japan, home of the Fukushima nuclear reactor disaster in 2011, he said.

A previous alert, Nov. 26, cited the Fukishima nuclear disaster, where a power plant was struck first by an earthquake, then by a tidal wave created by the undersea quake.

Several of the reactors at Fukushima melted down and exploded, releasing massive doses of radiation into the air and water.

Yother said the records show that Seattle, which once was one of the lowest radiation reporting sites in the nation, has been rising since the disaster.

“We can tell it has been increasing,” he said.

Officials with the Utah and Nevada offices of emergency management did not immediately respond to WND questions about the readings. Nor did the Department of Homeland Security.

The website offered basic advice for when radiation levels rise.

“You may wish to close windows in your home or office to keep radiation out, and remove shoes upon entering your home, perhaps rinsing them off so as not to track radiation into the home. You may also consider using near-the-door coat racks to hang external coats or jackets you wore outside so as to keep any radiation that may have accumulated upon them, in one location and not have it throughout your home.”

The Fukushima disaster developed in the aftermath of the March 11, 2011, quake. The cooling equipment at the plant failed, allowing the reactors to melt down. It was the largest nuclear disaster since the Chernobyl meltdown in 1986. It was the second disaster, along with Chernobyl, to measure Level 7 on the International Nuclear Event Scale.

Russia Today reported yesterday that Tokyo is looking to spent $970 million to store 130,000 tons of contaminated soil dug out from near the crippled power plant.

The government also wants to buy up to five square kilometers of land to build a storage facility.

The plant was designed by General Electric and run by the Tokyo Electric Power Company. Last July, the plant reportedly was leaking tons of heavily contaminated water into the Pacific.

In addition to the email alert, the NETC.com map showed four concern points in the Western United States, three in California and one inland a few hundred miles.

They were listed at Radcon 4, only one step from an alert, the map showed.

Iran to Launch Nuclear Radiation System

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran plans to launch a nuclear radiation system for the first time in the country, an AEOI official announced on Saturday.

“A pilot project of this system will come into operation in several provinces soon,” Head of the AEOI’s Laser and Optic Research Center Abbas Majdabadi told FNA on Saturday.

He explained that this nuclear radiation system will have many applications in the agricultural sector and in improving the quality and life-time of agricultural products.

“This nuclear fusion radiation system has applications in agriculture and can prevent germination of, for instance, onion and potato through the Gama radiation technique,” he said.

Majdabadi said due to its numerous agricultural applications and benefits, the home-made radiation system will be used in various Iranian provinces, specially in the Northern Gilan province where a wide range of agricultural products are planted.

Last week, the AEOI Chief Ali Akbar Salehi stressed during a meeting with the members of the parliament's Education Commission that the AEOI would continue research in various nuclear fields.

“The lawmakers asked questions about nuclear research and development and Mr. Salehi reiterated that no research will be halted” due to the recent agreement between Tehran and the six world powers, member of the parliament’s Education Commission Alireza Salimi told FNA after the commission meeting.

According to Salimi, Salehi reiterated that if Iran did not have its current position in science and technology, the enemy would not sit to the negotiating table with it.

“Mr. Salehi told the commission members that we could manage the negotiations (with the world powers) still in a better way to find an upper hand,” Salimi said.

GAO Wants Radiation Guidelines for Terrorism in U.S. Cities

Japan’s panicked Fukushima evacuation of some 130,000 persons was unnecessary, but it serves as a great warning for us. For most of the evacuees, their first year exposure was about 2 REMs of radiation, fifty times below where it causes illness. Some were exposed to 22 REMs, still far below the sickness level of 100 REMs. Yet the Japanese were basically followingAmerican civil defense guidelines. Irrational fear of radiation permeates Washington’s civil defense and nuclear regulatory guidelines. There is an argument that virtually any radiation might eventually cause cancer in some people. The Wall Street Journal link above calculates a possible 194 excess cancers among the Fukushima population, however 1,600 persons died from the forced evacuation.


The report’s conclusion, What GAO Found, urges “that FEMA develop guidance to clarify the early response capabilities needed by cities for RDD (radiological dispersal device) and IND (improvised nuclear device) attacks. FEMA did not concur with this recommendation. GAO believes that gaps in early response abilities warrant federal attention and has clarified its recommendation.”Fortunately, the GAO recently published a revant report in September: NUCLEAR TERRORISM RESPONSE PLANS:Major Cities Could Benefit from Federal Guidance on Responding to Nuclear and Radiological Attacks. It details dangerous ignorance by most cities’ officials which “could lead to a disjointed and untimely response that might increase the consequences of attack.” The “GAO found that federal guidance on the type and timing of such assistance is not readily available or understood by all emergency managers” and that “cities may not have the information they need to adequately prepare for and respond to them. This could lead to complications that result in greater loss of life and economic impacts.”

These concerns may have come about because of more and more reports that the forced evacuation in Fukushima was not necessary. The panicked Japanese authorities were apparently following old American guidelines under the ALARA policy. ALARA means As Low as Reasonably Achievable which, in practice, has been interpreted as meaning that any radiation is dangerous. The threshold was established after World War II and then used by the EPA to set a 15 millirem limit as the danger exposure level for nearly everything from civil defense to reactors and nuclear waste disposal sites. Actual threats to health starts at 100 REM. The EPA is now considering a 50 REM threat level. In Japan not a single person died from radiation, and hardly any got ill, even among the emergency nuclear workers at the reactor.

The fact that FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Administration) did not agree with the GAO's call for clarified guidance may not just be government inertia. It could also be because of strong resistance from extreme environmentalists who oppose any modification of old rules about what radiation levels are actually dangerous. EPA is working on new guidelines for exposure risk from terrorist attacks. Its formal 90 day public comment period expired on July 15(since extended to Sept 15th) and the report has still not been issued. Extreme environmentalists are already opposing any modifications.

If the EPA and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (which incidentally contributed to the panic in Japan by urging Americans up to 50 miles away to flee the whole area) propose substantial changes in limits, it could bring into question the whole excessive fear level about the use of nuclear energy and nuclear waste disposal. Furthermore it could challenge other far-out EPA limits on dust, mercury, lead, and all sorts of other chemicals and minerals based on the theory of “linear no threshold theory.” Their cost to the American economy in lost jobs, shut down factories and mines is stupendous. EPA models are largely based on this theory, namely that even the tiniest exposure—e.g. parts per billion—will eventually produce illness, mainly cancers, in some people. An article in Forbes explains why the theory is fallacious. The costs of EPA enforcement of its old models are in the hundreds of billions—the Wall Street Journal reports that the cost for cleaning up 130 contaminated nuclear sites is $350 billion.

For more details on measuring radiation, civil defense and consequences of the linear no threshold theory, please see my earlier article "Terrorism and Radiation, Understanding the Real Threat to Our Cities."

Ignorance in the national media is equally pervasive. Witness the recent reports that radioactive water was leaking into the ocean from Fukushima. Almost nowhere did one see any explanation or questioning of the amounts of radiation, whether they were dangerous or simply negligible. Finally the Washington Post published some details explaining the perceived dangers, but still using the old radiation limits. The Japan Times has published some realistic information about fish and radiation. The New York Times recently published an op-ed, Taming Radiation Fears, calling for less panic and better understanding.

In 2004 I wrote "Thoughts on Terrorist Targets" arguing that Bin Laden would not waste his resources on small targets, that his objectives were major ports, infrastructure or symbolic ones. However, with his death and now the proliferation of little Al Qaeda cells with angry young men, humiliated and enraged by what they see as America’s unjust killing of Muslims, the threat has changed. Since Boston’s attack we now know that just a few can launch terrorism inside America. The Boston bombing was done by two men, the recent Kenya shopping mall attack, by half a dozen or a few more. A nuclear device or “dirty bomb” is beyond the capability of most, but one day there will surely be such an attack.

The greatest threat from terrorism is what Washington, in reaction, does to America. We were spared in Boston, but need to pay attention now. Thankfully the GAO report is a good start.

Regulators call for radiation dose management on individual basis in Japan

The Nuclear Regulation Authority on Wednesday decided to propose to a government task force that the management of radiation doses on an individual basis is vital to working out measures to protect people seeking to return to their homes after the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster.

The proposal is expected to bring about a change in the government's policy of using "estimated" personal doses, calculated from air dose levels measured by radiation monitoring posts and other sources, when setting evacuation zones and other protective steps.

But as radiation exposure measured by individual dosimeters tends to be lower than estimated doses, the latest move could effectively mean a relaxation of the rules, making it easier for the government to achieve its long-term goal of reducing exposure doses to 1 millisievert per year in contaminated areas.

Estimated doses are calculated on the assumption that an individual remains eight hours outdoors and 16 hours indoors.

NRA Chairman Shunichi Tanaka said at a meeting of NRA commissioners that grasping individual doses is "essential" when evacuees return homes, because each person's lifestyle is different.

"Individual doses differ, and that could affect health," he said.

The proposal also called on the government to present a road map showing the timeline for measures it will implement to help people decide whether to return to their homes as well as to support those who decide to do so.

The measures include creating a team of counselors for each community that will help residents take radiation protection measures based on their dosimeter readings and respond to their concerns.

More than two years have passed since the Fukushima crisis was triggered by a huge earthquake and tsunami, but around 150,000 Fukushima Prefecture residents still live as evacuees.

In August, the government finished reclassifying areas where evacuation orders are in place to three categories based on radiation levels -- a zone where evacuation orders are ready to be lifted, a zone where habitation is restricted and a zone where residents will have difficulties in returning for a long time.

Decontamination efforts are being made but there has not been a case in which an evacuation order has been lifted.

Japan Rolls Out $800 Radiation-Proof Underwear, Wetsuits

A Japanese swimsuit maker has just unveiled a new line of anti-radiation underwear and wetsuits that can protect you from contamination. With Fukushima still very much at the forefront of everyone’s mind, these special line of clothes are designed to protect people from harmful beta ang gamma rays. The Yamamoto Corporation, who is behind this new endeavor, designed the products for workers and those helping clean up after the disaster, but we can easily imagine these being worn by many other people who are concerned about another nuclear meltdown.

DEP Secretary: regulating radiation may be “next frontier” of drilling oversight

The state Department of Environmental Protection’s acting Secretary Chris Abruzzo says regulating the radioactive materials associated with gas drilling could be the “next frontier” of the agency’s oversight of the industry.

In an interview with the Scranton Times-Tribune, Abruzzo says the DEP is still in the midst of its year-long study into naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) and technologically enhanced material (TENORM).

“It will depend largely on what the results [of the study] show us,” Abruzzo told the newspaper. “It certainly has the potential to be the next frontier in terms of regulations coming out.”

Although the DEP says it’s unlikely there is a threat to public health, concerns about radioactivity associated with oil and gas development persist.

A study published last month in the journal of Environmental Science and Technology found high levels of radiation and salinity in a creek near a drilling wastewater treatment facility in western Pennsylvania.

After submitting a lengthy criticism about the DEP’s radiation study, two organizations representing the state’s oil and gas industry announced last week they will launch their own review of radioactive materials associated with their work.

New invention 'harvests' electricity from background radiation

New invention 'harvests' electricity from background radiation and could be used to beam power to remote locations or recharge phones wirelessly

• Device captures microwaves and converts them into electricity 
• Future versions could harvest satellite, sound or Wi-Fi signals 
• Technology could be used to recharge phones without cables or beam electricity to mountaintops 

Engineers at Duke University have designed a breakthrough gadget that 'harvests' background microwave radiation and converts it into electricity, with the same efficiency as solar panels.

The development, unveiled on Thursday, raises exciting possibilities such as recharging a phone wirelessly and providing power to remote locations that can't access conventional electricity.

And the researchers say that their inexpensive invention is remarkably versatile. It could be used to capture 'lost' energy from a range of sources such as satellite transmissions, sound signals or Wi-Fi.

The Duke engineers used metamaterials, which their press release describes as 'engineered structures that can capture various forms of wave energy and tune them for useful applications.'

They say the device harvested microwaves with an efficiency of 36.8 percent, similar to modern solar cells that capture light energy.

A report that will appear in the journal Applied Physics Letters in December states that this invention is capable of converting microwave signals to enough direct current voltage to recharge a cell phone battery.

The gadget, created by undergraduate engineering student Allen Hawkes, graduate student Alexander Katko and lead investigator Steven Cummer, consists of five fiberglass and copper conductors wired together on a circuit board.

It is capable of providing 7.3V of electricity. As the press release points out, current USB chargers provide around 5V.

Hawkes said: 'We were aiming for the highest energy efficiency we could achieve. We had been getting energy efficiency around 6 to 10 percent, but with this design we were able to dramatically improve energy conversion to 37 percent, which is comparable to what is achieved in solar cells.'

His colleague, Katko, added: 'It's possible to use this design for a lot of different frequencies and types of energy, including vibration and sound energy harvesting.

'Until now, a lot of work with metamaterials has been theoretical. We are showing that with a little work, these materials can be useful for consumer applications.'

Possible uses for the new technology include building metamaterial into homes to ensure Wi-Fi signals are not just lost.

Electrical products could also have a device attached to increase efficiency by ensuring that excess power is not wasted.

In theory, the invention could also be used to beam signals from phone towers that could then be converted into electricity.

Electronic devices could be recharged wirelessly or electricity sent to remote areas without power cables.

The researchers explained that a series of the power-harvesters could even capture signals from satellites passing overhead.

This could allow for electricity in hostile environments such as mountaintops or deserts. Cummer said: 'Our work demonstrates a simple and inexpensive approach to electromagnetic power harvesting.

'The beauty of the design is that the basic building blocks are self-contained and additive. One can simply assemble more blocks to increase the scavenged power.'

High levels of radiation found in creek near drilling wastewater site in western Pa.

A new study published in the journal of Environmental Science and Technology has found high levels of radiation and salinity in a creek near a drilling wastewater treatment facility in western Pennsylvania.

The Duke University study took numerous samples of water discharged downstream of the Josephine Brine Treatment Facility into Blacklick Creek in the Allegheny River watershed from the summer of 2010 to the fall of 2012. Sediment in the creek contained levels of radium that were 200 times greater than normal or background levels, along with high levels of salts like chloride and bromide in the surface water.

These elements come from a naturally occurring brine that is released along with natural gas during the hydraulic fracturing or fracking process. That radioactive brine, known as “flowback,”is either injected back underground or sent to facilities like Josephine where the wastewater is treated and then deposited into rivers and streams.

Professor Avner Vengosh, one of the study’s lead authors, said the radium and salt levels found in the creek are “problematic” and could lead to bio-accumulation of radiation in bugs and eventually, animals further up the food chain like fish.

“That’s why in the U.S. they have a limitation on how much you’re allowed to dispose from a site and to a certain level, to define it as radioactive waste disposal site,” Vengosh said. “The values we measured in the sediments in this site are far, far exceeding these threshold values.”

Fracking’s Other Danger: Radiation

Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection announced plans to study radioactivity associated with oil and gas drilling. The DEP says preliminary results from landfills have indicated radiation releases, but at levels too low to threaten public health. The issue has come up over the past several years in obscure studies that avoided headlines. But the jury’s still out on the dangers of shale related radiation exposures.

In the fall of 2011, the USGS released areport on radium in Marcellus Shale flowback fluid. The report didn’t address public health issues directly, but concluded that the levels of radiation in Marcellus produced water is far higher than the resulting flowback water in other formations. Concentrations of saline in water buried deep within the Appalachian Basin is unusually high, which is associated with increased levels of radium.

It’s not easy to get data on the content of production water. For its study, the USGS had to rely on tediously scanned data from the DEP, a 1999 report from the New York State Department of Environment and Conservation, as well as limited industry cooperation. Presumably, the DEP researchers will have better access to good data. But the USGS report does raise some important questions.

People are unlikely to drink such salty water. But animals are attracted to salt, and fracking waste water spills or leaks could be consumed by livestock. The problem with radium is it can accumulate in the soil where crops are grown, and where animals graze. From there, it could be passed on to people. Radium at some level, is present in almost all rocks, soil and water. The question is how much would be harmful to public health, and how much is released by the drilling process. The Environmental Protection Agency says the body will eliminate the bulk of radium that is ingested, but long-term exposure can be harmful.

“Inhaled or ingested radium increases the risk of developing such diseases as lymphoma, bone cancer, and diseases that affect the formation of blood, such as leukemia and aplastic anemia. These effects usually take years to develop. External exposure to radium’s gamma radiation increases the risk of cancer to varying degrees in all tissues and organs.”

Radium is a known carcinogen. According to the Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry, exposure can result in “increased incidence of bone, liver, and breast cancer.” More harmful, however, is radon, a decay product of radium. Radon exposure can cause lung cancer, and often seeps into households from underground formations.

A report issued by Marvin Resnikoff, of Radioactive Waste Management Associates, sounded an alarm that Marcellus Shale gas contains high levels of radon, which could create health impacts for the end users cooking with it, or heating their homes.

“We calculate the number of excess lung cancer deaths for New York State. Our results: the potential number of fatal lung cancer deaths due to radon in natural gas from the Marcellus shale range from 1,182 to 30,448.”

But Resnikoff’s report is controversial, and was rebutted by another scientist Lynn Anspaugh, who prepared comments for a pipeline company seeking a permit from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to transport Marcellus Shale gas.

“Natural gas samples have now been collected by an independent environmental engineering company and analyzed by at an independent commercial laboratory by a certified health physicist and specialist in radon measurements….The sample analyses clearly show that the radon levels in the natural gas are low and will cause no significant health risk. Further, the sample results directly and factually contradict Resnikoff’s speculative claims.”

Either way, Kevin Stewart, director of environmental health for the American Lung Association of the Mid-Atlantic region, says the issue deserves greater study.

“These are fair questions for the scientists to ask and address,” says Stewart. “Proponents (of gas drilling) make the case that there’s no problem. And the opponents (of gas drilling) say ‘oh there’s radon in the shale.’ But radon is everywhere. The question is how much, what are the exposures, and what are the risks.”

Stewart points out that despite some scientists warning of the dangers of bedrock radon seeping into houses for decades, the impacts were not clearly known and reported until the mid-1980′s. DEP’s radiation study is expected to be completed in 2014.

208 Instances of Radiation in Cargo Containers

Quarantine authorities nationwide uncovered 208 instances in which excessive levels of radiation were found in imported cargo containers in September, the nation's top quality watchdog said on Thursday.

There was 19.6 percent more radiation from the same period last year, said Chen Xitong, spokesman for the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.

A figure provided by the authority shows that more than 1,000 cargo containers were found with excessive levels of radiation in the first half of this year. Last month, customs in Taizhou, Zhejiang province, seized 952 metric tons of waste materials that were imported from Japan.

Cabbage Helps Protect Us From Radiation

Cabbage could be the key to protecting people from radiation during cancer therapy, new research has shown.

The Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Centre study found that a compound derived from cruciferous vegetables - such as cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli - protected rats and mice from lethal doses of radiation.

The American researchers' work suggests the compound, already shown to be safe for humans, may protect normal tissues during radiation therapy for cancer treatment, and prevent or mitigate sickness caused by radiation exposure.

The compound - known as DIM - previously has been found to have cancer preventative properties. But the study's corresponding author, Doctor Eliot Rosen, said: "This is the first indication that DIM can also act as a radiation protector."

The research was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Radioactive cesium in foods drops to one-fifth in Fukushima

Radiation exposure through food items consumed by residents in central Fukushima Prefecture continues to remain far below the legal safety limit, according to a health ministry study.

The dose of radioactive cesium from average meals in the region last year dropped to one-fifth of the level a year earlier, the health ministry said June 21.

The ministry’s finding showed that annual dose of radiation amounted to 0.0038 millisievert as of autumn 2012, down from 0.0193 millisievert a year earlier.

Japan’s annual radiation dose is set at up to 1 millisievert under law.

The ministry calculated the annual figures based on readings of radiation from rice, seafood and processed foods produced in local areas.

The central part of the prefecture includes Fukushima city, the prefectural capital, which is about 60 kilometers from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.

Klansman and accomplice charged for building radiation gun

Two men, one of them a member of the Ku Klux Klan, were arraigned today in Albany, N.Y., on federal charges of plotting to build a mobile radiation gun intended to kill Muslims – or “medical waste,” as the plotters called their intended targets.

Glendon Scott Crawford, 49, a Klan member from Galway, N.Y., and Eric J. Feight, 54, of Hudson, are both charged with conspiracy to provide material support for terrorism in the use of a weapon of mass destruction.

The case has been under investigation by a Joint Terrorism Task Force since at least April 2012, when Crawford allegedly reached out to Jewish organizations, asking if Israel would be interested in such a weapon to kill its enemies.

“The essence of Crawford’s scheme is the creation of a mobile, remotely operated, radiation emitting device capable of killing human targets silently and from a distance with lethal doses of radiation,” says a 67-page criminal complaint filed by the FBI.

It might sound far-fetched, but experts told investigators that the design would work, producing a “a lethal, and functioning, remotely controlled radiation-emitting device,” the complaint says

A “central feature of the weaponized radiation device is that the target(s) and those around them would not immediately be aware they had absorbed lethal doses of radiation and the harmful effects of that radiation would not become apparent until days after the exposure,” the complaint says.

At one point, Crawford described his planned device as “Hiroshima on a light switch,” the complaint says.

The charging document contends that Crawford, who worked at a General Electric manufacturing plant, conspired in designing the device with Feight, who the Albany Times-Union identified as working for an electronics company in Columbia County, N.Y.

No actual device was built, the complaint says, but the pair was far along with the design and testing.

“Crawford, conspiring with Feight, and assisted by others, has supervised and successfully completed the building, testing and demonstration of a remote initiation device,” the complaint says. “He now (on or about June 18, 2013) plans to integrate that remote initiation device into a truck-borne, industrial-grade x-ray system, thus weaponizing that system and allowing it to be turned on and off from a distance and without detection.”

The complaint says Crawford described his device as having three core components: “an x-ray tube or system that would emit ionizing radiation; a power supply for the x-ray tube/system; and a control panel that could be used to remotely turn the device on and off.”

The case against the pair, it initially appears, is built around extensive recordings of their conversations and e-mails. Within six weeks of Crawford’s attempts to solicit financing from two Jewish organizations, the FBI was monitoring and recording much of his activity and had recruited an informant.

Last August, Crawford traveled by car from his home in Albany to North Carolina to meet and solicit funding from an unidentified  “ranking member of the Ku Klux Klan,” who cooperated when contacted by FBI agents. In early October, he traveled to Greensboro, N.C., to meet with a cooperating witness and two undercover FBI agents who posed as “Southern businessmen of means who were associated with the KKK.”

Crawford “described to the [undercover FBI agents] his radiation emitting device, his remote initiation device, mobilizing the radiation device and discussed operation security concerns,” the complaint says. “Crawford again solicited money to finance his scheme (primarily to fund the purchase or acquisition of an industrial strength x-ray system).”

The complaint further says the “first and second branches have assisted Crawford with financing and obtaining of parts,” but it’s not clear from the document if that’s a reference to a branch or local unit of the KKK.

In conversations recorded by the FBI, the complaint says, Crawford identified himself as “a member of the Ku Klux Klan, specifically, the United Northern & Southern Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.”

Third Radiation Belt Discovered

Another radiation belt was discovered circling the earth. The Van Allen radiation belts (two of them) were discovered in 1958 and while they do not pose a direct threat to human life, they are important for scientists to study. On March 1, The Telegraph reported that a third ring appeared and circled the earth for about a few weeks and then dispersed.

"Astronomers hope to discover how often the third belt forms and learn more about the behaviour of all three belts, which can damage communications and GPS satellites and expose astronauts to extra doses of radiation," The Telegraph reported.

The radiation belt discovered last year is being studied by astronomers even though it is no longer circling the earth. Many scientists want to know why it formed and if another third belt will form in the future. There are also ongoing studies involving the Van Allen belts, which astronomers say could "impact basic science."

"We thought we knew the radiation belts, but we don’t. The advances in technology and detection made by NASA in this mission already have had an almost immediate impact on basic science," said Nicky Fox, Van Allen Probes deputy project scientist at the Johns Hopkins University (via The Telegraph).

A radiation belt has not been discovered since the discovery of the first two back in the 50's. This third belt is important because it suggests that more belts could form and perhaps there could be an immediate danger to human life in years to come.

Fukushima Fish 2,500 Times Over Radiation Limit

Two years after the disaster at the Fukushima Daichi nuclear plant in Japan -- called the "worst accidental release of radiation to the ocean in history" -- a fish with staggering levels of radiation has reportedly been found in the vicinity of the plant.

According to French newspaper Le Monde, the fish was caught last Friday. It reportedly contained more than 2,500 times the legal limit for radiation in seafood.

[Plant operator] Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) said caesium equivalent to 254,000 becquerels per kilogramme -- or 2,540 times more than the government seafood limit -- was detected in a "murasoi" fish.

The fish, similar to rockfish, was caught at a port inside the Fukushima plant, a TEPCO spokesman said.

The find is a stark reminder that fears of radiation continue to haunt the island nation years after the nuclear catastrophe rocked Japan's waters.

The Fukushima disaster occurred in 2011 after the plant was ravaged by a devastating tsunami following an earthquake. The facility's emergency generators were flooded, causing meltdowns in three reactors. As radiation spewed into the surrounding waters and atmosphere, thousands of residents were evacuated and fishing around Fukushima was stopped. At the time, the government reportedly also "banned beef, milk, mushrooms and vegetables from being produced" in the surrounding areas.

Sale of some kinds of seafood and produce have since resumed, according to the Jiji Press.

Since the Fukushima catastrophe -- the largest nuclear disaster since Chernobyl -- scientists have attempted to figure out the spread and impact of the radiation that was released that fateful day.

In April 2012, researchers from the U.S.-based Woods Hole Institution, led by marine chemist Ken Buesseler, announced that they had found "elevated levels" of radiation in the marine environment around Fukushima.

Then in October, Buessler and his colleagues revealed that about 40 percent of the fish caught near the nuclear plant was found to be contaminated with radioactive caesium above government safety limits. According to the Guardian, Buesseler warned at the time that Fukushima fish "may be inedible for a decade."

As NTD-TV notes, the scientist also suggested that radiation could still be leaking from the crippled Fukushima plant.

"We can't sell any of these fish, it's such a waste," Kozo Endo, a Japanese fisherman from the Fukushima area, told ABC Radio Australia last November. "We can only catch them for radiation sampling."

Both the Japanese government and TEPCO have said in the past that the tainted fish that have been found in the waters near the nuclear plant may not have been caused by the Fukushima fall-out. According to ABC, Japan's Fisheries Agency said last year that the contamination was "sinking deeper into the seabed and is not entering the food chain," while TEPCO maintained that no "tainted water is leaking from the facility."

Radiation Scanners Identify Concealed Guns

The NYPD has unveiled a new "weapon" in its arsenal to fight illegal guns: a radiation scanner that can spot concealed guns from a distance — no need for controversial stop-and-frisks.

NYPD commissioner Raymond Kelly announced Wednesday that the police will soon deploy and test the portable radiation scanner on the streets, as reported by the New York Daily News. The high-tech machine reads terahertz radiation, the energy naturally emitted by people and objects, from a distance, allowing police officers to see through people's clothes and potentially spot guns.

"If something is obstructing the flow of that radiation, for example a weapon, the device will highlight that object," Kelly said.

The idea is to put these scanners in police cars or at notoriously violent corners and monitor passersby to see if any of them has a suspicious object hidden under his or her clothes. The NYPD showed a video of how this works at a Police Foundation breakfast on Wednesday. In the video, a police officer is standing on the street, wearing a New York Jets jersey. A superimposed image taken from a scanner shows a black object, which appears to be a gun, on his belt.

The scanner, which was developed by a contractor in conjunction with the London Metropolitan Police, is still in its trial phase. "We still have a number of trials to run before we can determine how best to deploy this technology. We’re also talking to our legal staff about this. But we’re very pleased with the progress we’ve made over the past year," Kelly said.

At this point, it's hard to tell how effective these machines will be. And the ACLU raised privacy concerns over these "virtual pat downs" last year. Some questions, for now, remain unanswered. Is being scanned randomly on the street a search without a probable cause? If it is, that would go against the Fourth Amendment, which protects against unreasonable searches.

In a statement sent to Mashable, New York Civil Liberties Union Executive Director Donna Lieberman said that "any technology that allows police to peer into a person's body or possessions raises a lot of questions that have yet to be resolved. But to the extent that this technology reduces the abuse of stop and frisk that harms hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers every year, we're intrigued by the possibilities."

Forewarning to Nuclear Terrorists in New Orleans

NNSA helicopter

National nuclear security agency helicopters are set to conduct aerial measurements of background radiation in the New Orleans, LA, area in the coming days.

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) said on Jan. 24 that it will be flying a helicopter over portions of the Louisiana city between Jan. 25 and Jan. 29, 2013 to measure naturally-occurring radiation in the area.

The NNSA said its Remote Sensing Laboratory (RSL) Aerial Measuring System (AMS) out of Joint Base Andrews near Washington, DC, will perform the assessment for local law enforcement in New Orleans.

NNSA officials said the radiation assessment will cover approximately 30 square miles. The agency said it would use a helicopter equipped with remote gamma radiation sensing technology to complete the assessment. The helicopter will fly in a grid pattern over the areas, 200 feet (or higher) above the ground surface, at a speed of approximately 80 miles per hour, it said, only during daylight hours. The agency said the assessment would take about four days to complete.

The measurement of naturally occurring radiation to establish baseline levels is a normal part of security and emergency preparedness.

The assessment is one of many the agency has been conducting in the past few months. It regularly notifies the public of the upcoming flights to ensure citizens who see the low-flying aircraft aren’t alarmed.

It conducted a similar assessment in Washington, D.C., between Dec. 27 and Jan. 11 and Dec. 26. The agency has conducted similar overflights in other cities, including Baltimore and San Francisco, earlier in 2012.

Blogger Note: While its nice to have transparency with our own people, it just does not seem right to give nuclear terrorists advance notice (if there be any).

Oil and gas drilling radiation study

The state Department of Environmental Protection has announced a yearlong study of radiation levels in equipment and wastes associated with oil and gas development it says will be the "most extensive and comprehensive" ever conducted.

The regulatory agency announced the study Thursday and said it will test radiation levels at dozens of well pads, wastewater treatment plants and waste disposal facilities statewide.

Oil and gas-bearing rock formations like the Marcellus Shale contain naturally occurring radiation that is brought to the surface in wastewater and rock waste. It can concentrate on pipes or equipment or in wastewater sludges. Some fluid samples from shale drilling indicate "significant concentrations" of radium 226, a naturally occurring radioactive metal, according to the study proposal by Perma-Fix Environmental Services of Pittsburgh.

The department said data it has reviewed to date show "very low levels of natural radioactivity" in oil and gas wastes and "do not indicate the public or workers face any health risk from exposure to radiation from these materials."

Less than half a percent of the Marcellus Shale rock waste taken to state landfills in 2012 triggered radiation monitors, DEP said, and tests in 2011 of rivers and drinking water intakes downstream of facilities that once treated and discharged Marcellus Shale wastewater found that any detected radiation was below safe drinking water standards.

The study "is aimed at ensuring that public health and the environment continue to be protected," the agency said.

DEP spokesman Kevin Sunday said the study is "very forward-looking" with a goal of adapting to changing technology. For example, the now common practice of recycling or reusing wastewater from one well to extract gas from another helps keep the fluid out of streams, but it may increase radioactivity in sludges.

"We want to make sure those continue to be disposed of safely," he said.

The study will evaluate radiation across the oil and gas production process, including drilling, storage, transportation, treatment and disposal. It will look at radon levels in natural gas, radiation in the leachate collected at 54 landfills in the state, and potential exposure pathways for workers and the public. It will also evaluate the potential need to set radioactivity limits in wastewater permits.

The DEP said it will seek a peer review of its study plan and begin sampling "in the coming weeks." It will also post the peer-reviewed plan online, provide progress reports to its advisory councils and make the final report available to the public.

Monks recorded ancient radioactive mystery

In the year 774 A.D., something bizarre happened. The Earth was bathed in potentially deadly gamma radiation. They mystery of course, is where did it come from, and why did we survive? Thanks to the diligent work of Catholic monks who lived during the time, scientists may have a clue.
The Anglo Saxon Chronicle mentions the red crucifix in the western sky at sunset. This may be one of the best clues astronomers have for identifying the cause of the 774 event.

Tree rings from around the globe all show the same thing. As scientists date ancient trees they find evidence that in 774 A.D., something caused a dramatic spike in the amount of radioactive carbon in their cores. Nothing like it has been recorded on Earth, before or since.

The tree rings also correlate perfectly with Antarctic ice cores which show a spike in an isotope of beryllium from the same year.

The evidence is clear. In the year 774, A.D., the entire planet was mysteriously bathed in a flash of gamma radiation.

Gamma radiation is one of the most severe types of radiation to come as a result of nuclear processes. The high frequency gamma rays are the cause of cellular damage in the body at the DNA level, and can cause radiation burns and sickness in all organisms. The radiation is deadly, and can kill victims bathed in it within a matter of minutes or hours.

In space, gamma radiation is common, hence the need for protective layers in spacesuits and spacecraft. However, the Earth is largely protected from gamma radiation, which is largely absorbed by the atmosphere. It takes a tremendous amount of gamma radiation to affect life on Earth.

Scientists are startled by the evidence from 774, because the only way to get so much radiation to the Earth's surface would require an amazing, astronomical event, at close range to Earth. There are only four events likely to create such a burst of energy close to the Earth. The first is a nearby supernova, the second would be an exceptionally powerful solar flare. The third would be a collision of two neutron stars. The last would be the formation of a black hole, with its polar axis pointing right at Earth.

So what was it? The leading theory has been that the sun must have belched an epic-sized solar flare directly at Earth. However, such a flare would have also caused spectacular auroras around the globe, which would have been widely recorded. None were.

As for neutron stars colliding and black holes forming, these could have done it, but none have been observed in the vicinity of Earth, close enough to bathe us in such radiation. The odds of such an event happening nearby are also astronomically incredible, although new mergers are recorded daily across the universe by orbiting space telescopes. In any given galaxy however, they are quite rare.

In fact, the only evidence we have that hints at a particular, astronomical event, is found in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a book detailing the Anglo-Saxon history of England that was widely distributed and updated in monasteries across medieval England.

 In the Chronicle, a reference is made to the appearance of a blazing red crucifix in the sky, seen in the western sky, shortly after sunset, in the year 774 A.D.

It is possible then, that a still, unrecognized supernova might have created the burst? While astronomers think such an event would be recorded around the globe and its after-effects visible to astronomers, it is possible that the event took place behind a cloud of dust, thus rendering it invisible.

In fact, many historically recorded supernovas are missing to modern astronomers.

This happens, because clouds of dust commonly obscure large portions of the deep sky from astronomers. The presence of the dust could also explain the red color that was recorded. The dust would have absorbed the other wavelengths of light causing the event to appear red to observers on Earth.

It's occurrence near sunset would have also made it difficult to observe from around the world, explaining why it was recorded in only one place - it was not readily visible anywhere else.

So did a supernova cause the Earth to be bathed in radiation n 774 A.D.?

Maybe, however it will require more study and more evidence before the mystery can be solved. Scientists remain divided on the issue.

Another competing school of thought is suggesting that the merger of two neutron stars.

The best way to verify what really happened might be a repeat of a similar event near Earth. However, Earth of 774 A.D. wasn't harmed because the planet was not dependent on orbiting satellites and electronic devices. The world of today is much different, and a repeat would shut down every satellite in orbit, without warning and without hope of repair or recovery.

Such an event would return the world to the age before satellites and mass communication, all within the space of a few seconds.

So naturally, scientists hope the event is not repeated nearby.

For now, the Chronicles faithfully recorded by ancient monks remains the best evidence we have of something that happened in 774 A.D., and there's nothing wrong with that.