Airline Passengers from Japan Trigger Radiation Detectors
Fri, Mar 18, 2011
Well this is alarming…
Passengers and cargo from flights that originated in Japan triggered radiation detectors when they passed through customs in Dallas and Chicago on Wednesday.
According to the New York Post, tests on a plane that landed at Dallas-Fort Worth showed traces of radiation on passengers’ luggage and inside the cabin’s filtration system. And NBCChicago.com reported that five or six planes flying into O’Hare from Tokyo had tested positive for radiation in the cargo areas.
Homeland Security and Customs and Border Patrol agents were screening passengers, luggage and mail arriving on flights from Japan at airports across the U.S., but the screening was routine. Apparently the federal government already monitors ALL incoming traffic for radiation. But agents were told to keep an extra close eye on passengers and cargo from Japan.
U.S. security officials were also quick to point out that hazardous levels of radiation had not been detected. They say the detection of small amounts of radiation is not unusual and could be caused by a number of things, including medical equipment, ceramic tile, and even kitty litter.
Right, that must be it. I’m sure the radiation detectors were tripped because some guy was cleaning his cat’s crap box right before his flight, and not because his country is on the brink of a nuclear meltdown…
Tim 
Jetpacker 
AJ 
This is just laughable, do you know that you are actually exposing yourself to the radiation by simply flying on a plane?
Flying for 10000km (just tiny less than the distance of Tokyo -> New York) gives you a dosage of more less 100μSv, twice of when you have your chest x-ray-ed. Where Narita cities radiation is currently in between 0.9 – 1.1μSv (still higher than normal… which is around 0.05μSv). It’s like your are weighing yourself cocking scale. Yeah, that would really go beyond the measurement because you are using wrong scale!!
What an utter nonsense.
Thanks for the feedback Tim! I’d hate to see you take an article that ends with Godzilla facepalming too seriously.
It’s worth pointing out that I think Tim was just trying to point out that the amount of radiation that would trigger a detection of radiation can be extremely small since the detectors are designed to pick up much more radioactive materials that are attempting to be smuggled in shielded containers. This article got syndicated through Reuters and sensational reporting doesn’t really help anything and not everyone will realize you are joking or the actual context of the joke.
Thanks AJ! The problem with Tim’s point about all fliers being exposed to radiation (which is certainly true) is that if this was all chalked up to that, then EVERY flier on EVERY long-haul flight would trip the sensors. So while this story at its inception was most likely a case of media sensationalizing a non-issue, there is some real potential danger here. We’re all just kind of waiting to see which way it goes.
I don’t have much to say, but it’s just disturbing, especially when you have relative live there near by.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tH7JYAphuTE&feature=player_embedded
Sorry to hear about your relatives Tim. I do hope they are all safe.