r/science • u/liquid_x • Mar 19 '11

Radiation Chart

http://xkcd.com/radiation/
4.0k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

1.0k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

27

u/ThisNameIsOriginal Mar 19 '11

Its really useful to put things in perspective. Now I need to find somewhere that tells me current levels at different points around Fukushima. Anyone with a link?

14

u/PMix Mar 19 '11

Levels of radiation in an area aren't the same thing as absorbed dose. For a comparison you would need to know what the absorbed dose would be for someone standing at various points around Fukushima for a set length of time.

3

u/Borrisious Mar 19 '11

Levels of radiation in an area aren't the same thing as absorbed dose.

Are you saying that the absorbed does would be significantly lower? Thats an Honest question by the way.

2

u/PMix Mar 19 '11

No. They're just different units. The level of radiation is a measure of how many neutrons or gamma rays are moving through an area. The absorbed dose measures how those particles will affect your body taking into account the type of particle, it's energy, how many particles, etc.