{"id":4221,"date":"2011-10-28T09:34:58","date_gmt":"2011-10-28T14:34:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/?p=4221"},"modified":"2015-09-26T11:10:58","modified_gmt":"2015-09-26T18:10:58","slug":"flying-with-the-geiger-counter-kit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2011\/10\/flying-with-the-geiger-counter-kit\/","title":{"rendered":"Flying with the Geiger Counter Kit"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/28069223?title=0&amp;byline=0&amp;portrait=0\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Shortly after <a href=\"http:\/\/wiki.hx2.org\/Geiger_Workshop\">my Geiger counter workshop<\/a> at the <a href=\"http:\/\/events.ccc.de\/camp\/2011\/\">Chaos Communications Camp<\/a> in Germany, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/#!\/Tatzelbrumm\">@tatzelbrumm<\/a> sent me this video of his kit chirping madly on his flight home to the United States.<\/p>\n<p>If you squint at the laptop in the video, you can see that his geiger counter is reading over 400 CPM! <\/p>\n<p>Exposure to cosmic radiation is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.epa.gov\/radtown\/cosmic.html\">a well-known side effect<\/a> of commercial airline flights, and is even documented in the <a href=\"http:\/\/xkcd.com\/radiation\/\">xkcd radiation dose chart<\/a> (click for a large version):<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/xkcd.com\/radiation\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"4358\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2011\/10\/flying-with-the-geiger-counter-kit\/radiation\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/radiation.png\" data-orig-size=\"1134,1333\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"xkcd\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/radiation-871x1024.png\" src=\"http:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/radiation-425x500.png\" alt=\"\" title=\"xkcd\" width=\"425\" height=\"500\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-4358\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/radiation-425x500.png 425w, https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/radiation-871x1024.png 871w, https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/radiation.png 1134w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 425px) 100vw, 425px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Christoph sent me his data logs, which clearly show the effect of altitude on radiation exposure:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"4351\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2011\/10\/flying-with-the-geiger-counter-kit\/cpm\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/cpm.png\" data-orig-size=\"485,329\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Comparison of CPM in the air vs. on the ground.\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/cpm.png\" src=\"http:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/cpm.png\" alt=\"\" title=\"Comparison of CPM in the air vs. on the ground.\" width=\"485\" height=\"329\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-4351\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The red trace is the background level on the ground in SFO and hovers around 20 CPM.  The blue trace is the measured radiation over Greenland on his transatlantic flight.  The peak readings are 25 times the background radiation at sea-level!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Caution:<\/strong> Unless you like being hassled by the TSA, I don&#8217;t recommend flying with the Geiger kit in your carry-on luggage, much less actually using it on the plane!  On his DIY Geiger Counter site, Brohogan posted <a href=\"https:\/\/sites.google.com\/site\/diygeigercounter\/traveling-with-the-geiger\">some good advice about traveling with a Geiger counter<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Look! <a href=\"http:\/\/mightyohm.com\/geiger\">Geiger Counter Kits!<\/a>  <a href=\"http:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2011\/10\/new-product-laser-cut-case-for-the-geiger-counter-kit\/\" title=\"New product: Laser-cut Case for the Geiger Counter Kit\">And shiny new cases!<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Have you done something cool with your Geiger Counter kit?  If so, <a href=\"http:\/\/mightyohm.com\/forum\/viewforum.php?f=15\">post about it in the forums<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Shortly after my Geiger counter workshop at the Chaos Communications Camp in Germany, @tatzelbrumm sent me this video of his kit chirping madly on his flight home to the United States. If you squint at the laptop in the video, you can see that his geiger counter is reading over 400 CPM! Exposure to cosmic &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2011\/10\/flying-with-the-geiger-counter-kit\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Flying with the Geiger Counter Kit<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[65],"tags":[401,45],"class_list":["post-4221","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kits","tag-geiger","tag-video"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pioCd-165","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8926,"url":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2017\/04\/verbose-mode-mightyohm-com-geiger-counter-kit-and-radiation\/","url_meta":{"origin":4221,"position":0},"title":"Verbose Mode: Mightyohm.com Geiger Counter Kit and Radiation","author":"Jeff","date":"April 25, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=1xl-hjlt5yY Chad Lawson is posting a series of videos about learning to make things on his site at verbosemode.tv. In his most recent video, Chad talks about radiation, radiation therapy, and his experiences building (and fixing) the MightyOhm Geiger Counter Kit. Thanks for the kind words, Chad!","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Kits&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Kits","link":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/category\/kits\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/1xl-hjlt5yY\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":13508,"url":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2020\/04\/alpha-radiation-makes-sparks-detects-smoke-and-eliminates-static-cling\/","url_meta":{"origin":4221,"position":1},"title":"Alpha radiation makes sparks, detects smoke, and eliminates static cling","author":"admin","date":"April 6, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/ZBHIp967TD8 Applied Science posted a video this week showing how a strong alpha source can be used to detect smoke or eliminate static cling. My Geiger Counter kit makes a cameo in the video. Note that the SBM-20 Geiger-M\u00fcller tube that normally ships with the kit isn't sensitive to alpha\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Kits&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Kits","link":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/category\/kits\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/ZBHIp967TD8\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8541,"url":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2016\/09\/lva-geiger-counter\/","url_meta":{"origin":4221,"position":2},"title":"LVA Geiger Counter","author":"Jeff","date":"September 2, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Veselin Georgiev created this custom Geiger counter based on the MightyOhm Geiger Counter kit.\u00a0Veselin's version, called the LVA Geiger Counter, includes several changes: A 7-segment display with brightness control shows the measured radiation level in uSv\/hr or total counts since startup. ATmega88 instead of ATtiny2313 to allow more space for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Projects&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Projects","link":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/category\/projects-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Image of Geiger Counter v2.0","src":"https:\/\/camo.githubusercontent.com\/694bb3dc7cd79fe24367529874e40fc34c0c9554\/687474703a2f2f6c76612e62672f70726f64756374732f6765696765722d636f756e7465722f67616c6c6572792f4765696765725f6d61696e2d736d616c6c65722e6a7067","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/camo.githubusercontent.com\/694bb3dc7cd79fe24367529874e40fc34c0c9554\/687474703a2f2f6c76612e62672f70726f64756374732f6765696765722d636f756e7465722f67616c6c6572792f4765696765725f6d61696e2d736d616c6c65722e6a7067 1x, https:\/\/camo.githubusercontent.com\/694bb3dc7cd79fe24367529874e40fc34c0c9554\/687474703a2f2f6c76612e62672f70726f64756374732f6765696765722d636f756e7465722f67616c6c6572792f4765696765725f6d61696e2d736d616c6c65722e6a7067 1.5x, https:\/\/camo.githubusercontent.com\/694bb3dc7cd79fe24367529874e40fc34c0c9554\/687474703a2f2f6c76612e62672f70726f64756374732f6765696765722d636f756e7465722f67616c6c6572792f4765696765725f6d61696e2d736d616c6c65722e6a7067 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5374,"url":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2012\/12\/star-jar-a-geiger-counter-triggered-led-decoration\/","url_meta":{"origin":4221,"position":3},"title":"Star Jar, a Geiger counter triggered LED decoration","author":"Jeff","date":"December 25, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"UK artist Nikki Pugh posted this video of her Star Jar, a Geiger counter triggered LED decoration for the holidays. This project is based on her holiday light display from last year. This version incorporates fading transitions is completely powered by the mains. The light changes are triggered by a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Electronics&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Electronics","link":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/category\/electronics\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4298,"url":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2011\/10\/new-product-laser-cut-case-for-the-geiger-counter-kit\/","url_meta":{"origin":4221,"position":4},"title":"New product: Laser-cut Case for the Geiger Counter Kit","author":"Jeff","date":"October 24, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm happy to announce the release of a custom laser-cut case for the Geiger Counter kit! The case, which is made of high quality clear acrylic, comes with standoffs and all the hardware needed to assemble it. The case includes access holes for the HV adjustment, the piezo beeper, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Announcements&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Announcements","link":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/category\/announcements\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Geiger Counter with Lasercut Case","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mightyohm.com\/files\/flickr\/6275026497_3cf9f175b2.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5489,"url":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/2013\/05\/come-see-my-glowy-geiger-chimes-at-the-2013-maker-faire-bay-area\/","url_meta":{"origin":4221,"position":5},"title":"Come see my Glowy Geiger Chimes at the 2013 Maker Faire Bay Area!","author":"Jeff","date":"May 12, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"It's that time of the year again! The 2013 Maker Faire Bay Area is next weekend (May 18-19th) in San Mateo, California. I haven't had time to post about it, but over the past few weeks I've been busy working on a special project for the Maker Faire this year.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Events&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Events","link":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/category\/events\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4221","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4221"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4221\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7757,"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4221\/revisions\/7757"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4221"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4221"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mightyohm.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4221"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}