are x rays the same as air travel radiation

[Jo20082008]

I was told by a doctor that having an x ray was no different than taking a flight so should not be concerned. If thats the case why is there no warning when we book our holiday etc Also can cosmic energy during a flight be the same as it is distributed over the hours that you are travelling whereas an x ray is all condensed into one, so is that more of a risk? Is cosmic radiation as dangerous as x rays and why are we never warned if thats the case... especially as we plan holidays to far away destinations believing that it is a benefit to our well being? I was also told that the radiation does not remain in the body it disapperars very quickly, so if thats the case why do they say that the radiation doses we receive are cumlative? They mention a limit we are allowed each year before it is dngerous but why is that the case if they say it does not remain within the body?

[sara3]

I assume your son is still okay!

[Jo20082008]

Yes thanks, he still has a cough but seems he did have some sort of virus which some other family members have now had as well, tht was making him cough a lot more. I am trying to understand this x ray thing as prior to this I had no idea bout any of this, especially about the flights etc

[Azalian]

All ionising radiation, including X- rays and cosmic rays, can be dangerous since they can damage DNA in the body.
There may be a small risk for passengers exposed to cosmic rays, but aircrew are exposed far more than most tourists.

Some evidence exists that ,say, pilots are more prone to melanomas (skin) neoplasms (tumours) according to new research.

The radiation does not acculmulate inside us but the effective damage does.

[fo3nix]

I believe he was probably meaning the x-ray machines at the airport.

X-rays can cause harm, but as long as you don't have too much of them, you'll be fine.

Cosmic rays don't even remotely come into this. Firstly, you're far too low down. Secondly, you're inside a big metal cigar.

[Azalian]

Actually, the question clearly states that the questioner is asking about "in flight" radiation uptake.

Pilots do absorb 2 to 3 times the normal background radiation level that people on the ground do not receive.

This radiation IS cosmic rays and also the derivatives of it, caused by CR's striking atoms in the upper atmosphere, admittedly slightly lower in energy but still very disruptive to sensitive tissues in the body.

[Jo20082008]

So does that mean that cosmic radiation is the same as x ray radiation or is that not the case.

[jake-the-peg]

From a physics perspective cosmic rays are different from X-rays in a couple of ways.

Firstly they are more energetic. Although both are electromagnetic X rays are lower frequency and slightly less energetic. Cosmic rays also collide in the upper atmosphere and produce secondary cosmic rays and various other subatomic particles such as muons.

When talking about radiation to laymen doctors and scientists look for a way to try to explain that radiation carries a risk but it's very small. They often latch on to X-rays because they are a form of radiation that everybody is familliar with.

It's an analogy and like most analogies it gets the fundamental point across but when you start asking difficult questions it doesn't work as well as it might.

Radiation dosages are measured in milli or micro sieverts.
It's a measure that tries to catagorise the effects of radiation on the body.

1 Sievert (Sv) might cause nausea, 3 SV would kill 50% of people in 30 days.

an X-ray is 0.03 to 0.1 miliSieverts or 30,000 times less than that lethal dose.

Flying at altitude is calculated at 0.0001 milisieverts per hour
http://www.hps.org/publicinformation/ate/faqs/ commercialflights.html

(penultimate question)

So actually it's a lot less

[fo3nix]

(Precisely.)

[Jo20082008]

Can you explain to me how the dose is cumlative?

Is it that we are building-up the doses inside us as we go along in life.. Be it from air travel ground radition x rays etc. Or is it different when it is all at once rather than over a period of time?