Radiation detection systems operate quietly in the background all around you

Most people don’t realize how much radiation is monitored around them all the time, including in public places. Airports have advanced radiation detection devices, for example. In 2022, the devices are at Heathrow Airport The package is marked Which turned out to contain a small amount of uranium. Authorities said at the time that there was no danger to the public.

Mirion is one of several companies that manufacture radiation detectors. Its products are used in defense and security applications, as well as in nuclear power plants, laboratories and research contexts. “If an accident occurs at a nuclear plant such as a fuel leak… these systems are connected to the safety system of the nuclear plant, so the nuclear plant will be shut down,” explains James Cox, chief technology officer. Area monitors absorb particles emitted by power plants onto filter paper, which can be analyzed to see if there is an uncontrolled release of radiation.

The company even makes a radiation detector designed to fit the underside of a drone. In the immediate aftermath of the Fukushima disaster, there was such a need to collect data on radiation that someone drove around on a motorcycle equipped with a radiation detector, Cox says. Today, he points out, drones will provide a safer way to collect such information.

But Merion also makes portable detectors that can be carried by individuals monitoring major sporting events, for example. These can distinguish between different types of radiation. You want to be able to know, for example, whether your higher-than-normal readings come from a dirty bomb or just someone who recently received medical treatment using radioisotopes. “We can determine whether it is naturally occurring background radiation, whether it is a medical radioactive isotope, or whether it is a fission product,” Cox says.

Thus one of the legacies of the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters is that we now have greatly upgraded radiation monitoring systems spread throughout the world. Kerfoot says there has been a marked increase in efforts to trace radiation in the wake of these incidents.

Bonner acknowledges that some people worry about radiation, and says that every now and then, a volunteer will build a Safecast detector, turn it on, and “panic” when it starts detecting activity. However, it’s important to show how widespread and diverse background radiation is, he says: “We absolutely believe it’s reassuring to let people know what’s going on.”