Aviation and radiation?

Question

How do airplanes protect themselves from high radiation?

Answer 1

Airplanes are adequately protected against harmful radiation and what little does pass through, is not dangerous. The Civil Aviation Authoriities throughout the world will never certify an aircraft unless they are a 100% sure that the occupants will be safe.

Answer 2

And there are those pilots who have been flying for too long and now they cant get it erect. Radiation poison

Those 2 who gave me a thumbs down can go F yourselfs

Answer 3

They don't really need to. Airliners are the highest flying planes in wide usage and they fly at roughly 30,00 feet. This is low enough for the atmosphere to handle any radiation from the sun and stars. Any extra that you might recieve is mitigated by the aircrafts skin and interior materials. I'd be more afraid of sunburn from falling asleep at the beach. Only very high flying aircraft might need any radiation protection. For instance, theres a prospective hypersonic plane idea being tossed about. It would likely fly at insane speeds at altitudes in excess of 80,000 feet. This might require some radiation protection for passengers. Untill we start flying frequently at the fringes of space (if we ever do) radiation isn't going to be a problem. Other than that, there aren't any threats to speak of.

Answer 4

They don't really protect themselves from high radiation other than the skin of the aircraft blocking any radioactive particles.

Pilots and passengers do receive generally higher amounts of radiation because there's less air to deflect it, but it's not significant enough to cause any serious problems.

Answer 5

Polarized coatings on the windows.

Sunglasses.

Airplanes are not built with any real radiation protection aboard.  For an average passenger doing a three hour flight, there IS an increase in radiation felt.  However is is on the order of about 1% of that received by getting an x-ray and is not dangerous.  Standing next to a brick house for three hours results in more radiation exposure than a cross-country airplane ride.

Answer 6

they dont. pilots receive many times the daily average dose or radiation when flying during the daytime but at the moment studies haven't shown any conclusive detrimental effects. there is some belief that there is a 'threshold' dose where this will be seen.

Answer 7

Ordinary airplanes do receive slightly more radiation than a person receives standing in an open field at sea level, but it isn't enough to worry about.  It doesn't matter.

Answer 8

What kind of radiation?

Alpha radiation is completely stopped by the skin and windows of the aircraft (this radiation won't even penetrate your own skin), as is most if not all of the Beta radiation.

Gamma in small doses, and that's all you would have up there, will pass through you with little effect at all. There's very little an airplane could do to keep out any Gamma radiation. Cosmic radiation is very low dose in the atmosphere. If you flew from LA to New York twenty times you would receive the equivalent exposure of a single chest X-ray (50 millirems). According to the CDC, a fligh attendant receives an annual exposure of 160 millirems of cosmic radiation, just over three chest X-rays a year. As another comparison, you receive an annual exposure of 40 millirems from radioactive sources that occur naturally in your own body!

You would have to fly a whole lot to worry about radiation.