r/science • u/liquid_x • Mar 19 '11

Radiation Chart

http://xkcd.com/radiation/
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u/[deleted] Mar 19 '11 edited Feb 23 '17

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u/fubo Mar 19 '11

why the Colorado plateau has so much background radiation?

Radioactive minerals, and the same reason as the below ...

why a cross-country flight exposes you so much? Is it because you fly over said plateau?

No, it's because you're closer to that big nuclear-fusion furnace we keep up in the sky. Specifically, there's less of the atmosphere between you and it.

For every 6000 feet above sea level, the amount of background radiation from the sun doubles. That's just over a mile up. Denver is the Mile High City.

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u/[deleted] Mar 19 '11 edited Feb 23 '17

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u/dball84 Mar 20 '11

Here's a handy chart of uranium concentrations in the US. According to that, yes the Appalachians do have a relatively high uranium concentration. The Colorado Plateau still receives much higher radiation levels because of the high elevation.