Assessment of indoor radiation dose received by the residents of natural high background radiation areas of coastal villages of Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, India

Radiation exposure and effective dose received through two routes of exposure, viz. external and internal, via inhalation, by residents of coastal villages belonging to Natural High Background Radiation Areas (NHBRA) of Kanyakumari District and Tamil Nadu inIndiawere studied. While the indoor gamma radiation levels were monitored using Thermo Luminescent Dosimeters (TLDs), the indoor radon and thoron gas concentrations were measured using twin chamber dosimeters employing Solid State Nuclear Track Detectors (SSNTDs, LR-115-II). The average total annual effective dose was estimated and found to be varied from 2.37 to8.64 mSv.

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Geochemical characterization of monazite sands based on rare earth elements, thorium and uranium from a natural high background radiation area in Tamil Nadu, India

Journal of Environmental Radioactivity ◽

10.1016/j.jenvrad.2021.106565 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 232 ◽

pp. 106565

Author(s):

N. Veerasamy ◽

R. Murugan ◽

S. Kasar ◽

K. Inoue ◽

N. Kavasi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Rare Earth ◽

Rare Earth Elements ◽

Tamil Nadu ◽

Background Radiation ◽

High Background ◽

Geochemical Characterization ◽

High Background Radiation Area ◽

Radiation Area

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Assessment of natural radioactivity and associated radiation indices in soil samples from the high background radiation area, Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, India

Radiation Protection and Environment ◽

10.4103/rpe.rpe_31_16 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 40 (1) ◽

pp. 27 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

AK Ajithra ◽

B Venkatraman ◽

MT Jose ◽

S Chandrasekar ◽

G Shanthi

Keyword(s):

Natural Radioactivity ◽

Tamil Nadu ◽

Background Radiation ◽

Soil Samples ◽

High Background ◽

High Background Radiation Area ◽

Radiation Area

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Is Telomere Length a Biomarker of Adaptive Response? Controversial Findings of NASA and Residents of High Background Radiation Areas

Journal of Biomedical Physics and Engineering ◽

10.31661/jbpe.v9i3jun.1151 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (3Jun) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

J Welsh ◽

J J Bevelacqua ◽

M Keshavarz ◽

S A R Mortazavi ◽

S M J Mortazavi

Keyword(s):

Radiation Dose ◽

Dose Rate ◽

Telomere Length ◽

Adaptive Response ◽

Background Radiation ◽

Space Radiation ◽

Dna Damages ◽

High Background ◽

The Difference ◽

High Level

Telomere length and stability is a biomarker of aging, stress, and cancer. Shortening of telomeres and high level of DNA damages are known to be associated with aging. Telomere shortening normally occurs during cell division in most cells and when telomeres reach a critically short length, DNA damage signaling and cellular senescence can be triggered. The induction of an adaptive response by space radiation was first documented in 2003. Telomere length alterations are among the most fascinating observations in astronauts and residents of high background radiation areas. While study of the chronic exposure to high levels of background ionizing radiation in Kerala, India failed to show a significant influence on telomere length, limited data about the NASA astronaut Scott Kelly show that exposure to space radiation can induce telomeres to regain length. Interestingly, his telomeres shortened again only a couple of days after returning to Earth. The difference between these situations may be due to the differences in radiation dose, dose-rate, and/or type of radiation. Moreover, Scott Kelly’s spacewalks (EVA) could have significantly increased his cumulative radiation dose. It is worth noting that the spacewalks not only confer a higher dose activity but are also characterized by a different radiation spectrum than inside the space craft since the primary particles would not interact with the vehicle shell to generate secondary radiation. Generally, these differences can possibly indicate the necessity of a minimum dose/dose-rate for induction of adaptive response (the so called Window effect).

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Assessment of Beach sand using Gamma Ray Spectrometer in Thiruvanathapuram District, Kerala of South India

IRA-International Journal of Technology & Engineering (ISSN 2455-4480) ◽

10.21013/jte.v5.n3.p2 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 5 (3) ◽

pp. 56 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ajithra Abinesh ◽

Shanthi G.

Keyword(s):

Tamil Nadu ◽

Gamma Ray ◽

Background Radiation ◽

Beach Sand ◽

Hazard Indices ◽

Air Exposure ◽

High Background ◽

Activity Concentrations ◽

The World ◽

The Waves

<div>It is well recognized fact that some areas of the world have anomalously high levels of natural background radiation referred to as high background radiation areas (HBRAs). Typical examples include Yangjiang in China, Rasmar in Iran and In India, part of coastal areas of Kerala and Tamil Nadu fall in this category. It has been established earlier that the cause for this high background is the presence of monazite (thorium). This study focuses on the estimation of the environmental radioactivity levels in the beach sands of Thiruvanathapuram district, Kerala. </div>Using high resolution gamma ray spectroscopy activity concentrations of 40K, 238U & 232Th were estimated. Activity concentrations ranged from 17-154 Bq/kg for 40K, from 4 to 100 Bq/kg for 238U and from 6 to 296 Bq/kg for 232Th.The mean activity concentration values obtained for the radionuclide are below than the world average values reported by the UNSCEAR. Subsequently assessed radiological effects show that the mean radium equivalent activity is 65 Bq/kg. The range of the calculated air exposure rate was between 14.2 to 228.1 nGy/h in both 0 m from the Waves and 10 m from the Waves. The values of external and internal radiation hazard indices are found to be less than unity. Measured natural radioactivity, hazard indices and effective dose received by the population were found to within the recommended limits. This work provides a good baseline data of natural radioactive elements for the sand of the area and its radiological significance.

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