Antinuclear

Australian invention: device to measure radiation exposure in pilots

New technology to measure radiation exposure in pilots (Medical Xpress) 17 July 13, —Researchers from the University of Wollongong have developed a unique device that measures how much radiation pilots and astronauts are exposed to. The silicon-based microdosimeter assesses the radiation risk to astronauts and pilots, and radiation damage to microelectronics, during long-term space missions and high altitude flights.

Exposure to too much radiation can cause cancer, damage to the foetuses of pregnant women and genetic defects that can be passed onto future generations.

Professor Anatoly Rozenfeld, Director of the Centre for Medical Radiation Physics (CMRP) – the largest research body of its kind in the Asia Pacific region – has just been granted a US patent for his invention.

“Silicon microdosimetry is providing a new metric for the estimation of hazards from ionizing radiation in mixed radiation fields. It is an essential contribution toradiation protection of pilots and astronauts in avionics and space, where the radiation environment is not easy to predict,” Professor Rozenfeld said…..

Professor Rozenfeld also recently received a Chinese patent for a skin dosimetry technology that was 10 years in the making. ‘Drop-in’ accurately measures (in real time) the amount of radiation absorbed into a patient’s skin during procedures such as radiotherapy and CT scans that can give off high levels of ionising radiation.

“An accurate skin dose measurement can help prevent a patient’s skin from being overdosed, and at the same time, provide a vital indication of overall radiation safety,” Professor Rozenfeld said. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-07-technology-exposure.html

July 18, 2013 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | health, New South Wales