NASA Study Shows Radiation Effects at High Altitudes

Pilots and flyers subjected to higher radiation levels per hour than non-flyers.

Those who are concerned about their radiation exposure at cruising altitude may have another reason to select the aisle seat when they fly. The Daily Mail reports a recent study by NASA shows just how much radiation flyers are exposed to when in transit.

The study, published in the peer-reviewed scientific publication Space Weather Journal, came from the 2015 NASA Radiation Dosimetry Experiment (RaD-X), conducted in New Mexico. During the study, researchers floated a weather balloon up to 60,000 feet above the Earth’s surface to determine how much radiation aviators and astronauts are exposed to in the air.

Preliminary data from the experiments show that those who do elect to fly are exposed to more radiation as they take to the skies. At eight kilometers above the air, or just over 26,000 feet, flyers were exposed to double the radiation than those on the earth, at 2.44 microseiverts of radiation. However, the amount of radiation the body absorbs during that same amount of time is smaller, with flyers only absorbing .90 micrograys of radiation per hour. The higher the weather balloon climbed, the higher the radiation became, with peak radiation coming at over 65,000 feet above the Earth.

The data has implications on both aviation and space exploration, as airlines and meteorologists look to reduce the amount of radiation those in the air are exposed to. The research will ultimately contribute to real-time radiation forecasting around the world, allowing pilots to change course if radiation gets to unusually high levels. The weather balloon trials also tested new devices that could help forecast radiation and keep aviators and astronauts safe on deep space exploration missions, including those potentially to Mars and beyond.