Radioactive contamination: truth and fiction

Radiation in our time is not only an interesting and relatively new phenomenon for science. It is known that under certain conditions, radioactive radiation is a mortal threat to all life. It not only causes a deep tissue damage, but can affect the genetic code of plants and animals. Later, it can manifest itself in the form of irreversible mutations in future generations. Even with relatively small doses of radiation in the body, destructive changes begin to occur. Very often, as a result of the effects of radiation on the body, people develop cancer.

That is why radioactive contamination is such an urgent problem. Concentration, which will become critical for the mouse, of course, is different from the one that will damage a person. Nevertheless, the existing sources of radioactive contamination are able at one point to throw out such a colossal amount of radiation that neither can be saved. Most of these sources, contrary to the general error, have a natural origin. For example, nuclear power plants, which are often told on television and in the press, in fact have a much lesser threat to the biosphere than we are used to thinking.

Where does radioactive contamination come from?

The most habitual, everyday activity of human society generates much more dangerous radiation than any enterprise of nuclear energy. This is hard to believe, since for a long time we were inspired by a completely different attitude. In many ways, modern ideas have developed due to an accident at the notorious Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Despite this stereotype, scientists recognize that according to statistics, people receive more exposure for their life from everyday, usually not causing any complaints, activities. This can include, for example, a standard approach to the radiologist.

The use of air transport, which has long become familiar to us, is as serious a source of radiation as others. It is also important to mention the danger of permanent location of sealed rooms. It has been proven that too good isolation provokes an increase in the natural level of radiation over time. But this is how the majority of modern life passes, in homes and offices. This is followed by an "innocent" process at first glance, like the burning of coal. And it can be safely moved to the top lines according to the intensity of irradiation.

Radioactive contamination of the biosphere

No one invented radiation, people could only detect its existence, and then relatively recently, just over a hundred years ago. But one can reliably say that such radiation was present on our planet (and not only on it, the Sun is a powerful source of radiation) almost from the very moment of its birth. This may give the impression that radioactive contamination is not at all a problem, and its danger to the environment is greatly exaggerated. But this is not so. The fact is that any, even not too large excess of the natural concentration of radioactive substances on the planet disrupts the normal functioning of the biosphere. The long-term effect is another unpleasant factor to be reckoned with.

Consider the most serious sources of radioactive contamination that exist at the present time:

In the first place is mining and subsequent processing of uranium ore. And the greatest danger is not the process itself, but the remaining wastes of production. As a rule, these are radionuclides - substances that have a very long half-life. Extractive industry is also a significant danger. The mines that contain uranium are themselves a zone of local radioactive contamination, which, due to the wind (it moves radioactive dust), can spread far beyond their limits.

Another source is coal. As everyone knows from the school course, this mineral began to form long ago, even from prehistoric plants. For a long period of formation under the earth's crust, coal undergoes a lot of metamorphosis, as a result of which it eventually becomes a serious source of radioactive radiation.

Then, thermal and nuclear power stations should be listed . The former use coal for their functioning, the action of the second is based on uranium. Both that, and another, as it was found out, bears in itself an essential threat. Also, as a result of nuclear power plants, radioactive waste is generated, liquid and solid, which have to be disposed of. This procedure does not bring nature anything good, especially since contaminated water often falls into the seas and lakes. A similar danger is posed by tests of nuclear weapons and wars with its use, as well as the peaceful but irresponsible use of nuclear technology.