New method measures both external and internal exposure to radiation
Mar. 18, 2008
by Hiromi Morita, Staff Writer
A team of researchers led by Professor Masaharu Hoshi of the Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine (RIRBM) at Hiroshima University have established a method for estimating levels of radiation exposure suffered by residents near the nuclear test site of the former Soviet Union in Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan. On February 28, experts from Japan and abroad voiced their approval of this method at a workshop held in Hiroshima. Future studies, including those on the health effects of long-term exposure to low-level radiation, will be based on this technique.
In Semipalatinsk, about 470 nuclear tests were conducted in the atmosphere and underground over a period of 41 years starting in 1949. A group of about 20 Japanese and foreign experts, including researchers at RIRBM, the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF) in Hiroshima, and the Kazakh Scientific Research Institute for Radiation Medicine and Ecology, have been working out this method for the past 13 years by measuring radiation levels of the buildings and soil in Semipalatinsk with the same dosimetry system used in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The new method is characterized by the fact that it can estimate not only external exposure to radiation but also internal exposure caused by the ingestion of radioactive fallout, which cannot be measured by the existing dosimetry system, DS02, used in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Professor Hoshi commented, “We would like to begin numerical calculations with this method, using actual figures. This method can also be applied when estimating radiation doses in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.”
Dosimetry References
1. K. Gordeev, I. Vasilenko, A. Lebedev, A. Bouville, N. Luckyanov, S. Simon, Yu. Stepanov, S. Shinkarev, L. Anspaugh. Fallout from nuclear tests: dosimetry in Kazakhstan. Radiat Environ Biophys 41:61-67; 2002.
2. K Gordeev, S. Shinkarev, L. Ilyin, A. Bouville, M. Hoshi, N. Luckyanov, S. Simon. Retrospective dose assessment for the population living in areas of local fallout from the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site. Part I: External exposure. J. Radiat. Res. 47, Suppl., A129-A136; 2006.
3. K Gordeev, S. Shinkarev, L. Ilyin, A. Bouville, M. Hoshi, N. Luckyanov, S. Simon. Retrospective dose assessment for the population living in areas of local fallout from the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site. Part II: Internal exposure to thyroid. J. Radiat. Res. 47, Suppl., A137-A141; 2006.
4. S. Simon, H. Beck, K. Gordeev, A. Bouville, L. Anspaugh, C. Land, J. Langer, N. Luckyanov, S. Shinkarev. External dose estimates for Dolon village: Application of the U.S./Russian joint methodology. J. Radiat. Res. 47, Suppl., A143-A147; 2006.
5. H. G. Hicks. Calculation of the concentration of any radionuclide deposited on the ground by off-site fallout from a nuclear detonation. Health Phys. 42:585-600; 1982.
6. B.W. Church, D.L. Wheeler, C.M Campbell, R.V. Nutley, and L.R. Anspaugh. Overview of the Department of Energy's Off-site Radiation Exposure Review Project (ORERP). Health Phys. 59:503-510; 1990.
7. S.L. Simon. An analysis of vegetation interception data pertaining to close-in weapons test fallout. Health Physics. 59:619-626; 1990.
8. L.R. Anspaugh, S.L. Simon, K.I. Konstantin Gordeev, I.A. Likhtarev, R.M. Maxwell, S.M. Shinkarev. Movement of radionuclides in terrestrial ecosystems by physical processes. Health Phys. 82:669-679; 2002.
A team of researchers led by Professor Masaharu Hoshi of the Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine (RIRBM) at Hiroshima University have established a method for estimating levels of radiation exposure suffered by residents near the nuclear test site of the former Soviet Union in Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan. On February 28, experts from Japan and abroad voiced their approval of this method at a workshop held in Hiroshima. Future studies, including those on the health effects of long-term exposure to low-level radiation, will be based on this technique.
In Semipalatinsk, about 470 nuclear tests were conducted in the atmosphere and underground over a period of 41 years starting in 1949. A group of about 20 Japanese and foreign experts, including researchers at RIRBM, the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF) in Hiroshima, and the Kazakh Scientific Research Institute for Radiation Medicine and Ecology, have been working out this method for the past 13 years by measuring radiation levels of the buildings and soil in Semipalatinsk with the same dosimetry system used in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The new method is characterized by the fact that it can estimate not only external exposure to radiation but also internal exposure caused by the ingestion of radioactive fallout, which cannot be measured by the existing dosimetry system, DS02, used in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Professor Hoshi commented, “We would like to begin numerical calculations with this method, using actual figures. This method can also be applied when estimating radiation doses in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.”
Dosimetry References
1. K. Gordeev, I. Vasilenko, A. Lebedev, A. Bouville, N. Luckyanov, S. Simon, Yu. Stepanov, S. Shinkarev, L. Anspaugh. Fallout from nuclear tests: dosimetry in Kazakhstan. Radiat Environ Biophys 41:61-67; 2002.
2. K Gordeev, S. Shinkarev, L. Ilyin, A. Bouville, M. Hoshi, N. Luckyanov, S. Simon. Retrospective dose assessment for the population living in areas of local fallout from the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site. Part I: External exposure. J. Radiat. Res. 47, Suppl., A129-A136; 2006.
3. K Gordeev, S. Shinkarev, L. Ilyin, A. Bouville, M. Hoshi, N. Luckyanov, S. Simon. Retrospective dose assessment for the population living in areas of local fallout from the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site. Part II: Internal exposure to thyroid. J. Radiat. Res. 47, Suppl., A137-A141; 2006.
4. S. Simon, H. Beck, K. Gordeev, A. Bouville, L. Anspaugh, C. Land, J. Langer, N. Luckyanov, S. Shinkarev. External dose estimates for Dolon village: Application of the U.S./Russian joint methodology. J. Radiat. Res. 47, Suppl., A143-A147; 2006.
5. H. G. Hicks. Calculation of the concentration of any radionuclide deposited on the ground by off-site fallout from a nuclear detonation. Health Phys. 42:585-600; 1982.
6. B.W. Church, D.L. Wheeler, C.M Campbell, R.V. Nutley, and L.R. Anspaugh. Overview of the Department of Energy's Off-site Radiation Exposure Review Project (ORERP). Health Phys. 59:503-510; 1990.
7. S.L. Simon. An analysis of vegetation interception data pertaining to close-in weapons test fallout. Health Physics. 59:619-626; 1990.
8. L.R. Anspaugh, S.L. Simon, K.I. Konstantin Gordeev, I.A. Likhtarev, R.M. Maxwell, S.M. Shinkarev. Movement of radionuclides in terrestrial ecosystems by physical processes. Health Phys. 82:669-679; 2002.
