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Asked by phoebe_Davison to Laura, Matthew, Andrew on 20 Nov 2014.
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Matthew Camilleri answered on 20 Nov 2014:
I will post a link at the end of this answer with different effects of radiation.
Radiation tends to effect different animals differently, and sometimes even members of the same species tend to have different effects to it. Radiation tends to make people sick rather then kill them, although it can easily cause cancer which can lead to early deaths.
In accidents like Chernobyl the radiation released was so huge that it wiped out everything in a specific radius, but that is an exception rather then rule.
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Andrew McKinley answered on 20 Nov 2014:
I assume you mean fatal? UV radiation from the sun falls on your face, so that would be ‘facial’
It all depends on the nature of the radiation and how it is absorbed. Alpha radiation (helium nuclei) are the least penetrating. A few centimetres of air will protect you from an alpha source – however it is highly ionising! If an alpha source gets into your body, it will strip electrons from molecules in your body and create highly reactive species which can be fatal. This is how Aleksander Litvenenko was killed – alpha emitter Polonium 210 was put in his food, he ate it, and his body sadly absorbed enough alpha radiation to kill him. Unfortunately there was nothing anyone could do.
Gamma radiation (electromagnetic radiation, rather than a particle) is very penetrating, and enough of this will be fatal also, but there is almost nowhere you can hide, short of a very deep, very thick-walled concrete bunker.
In short, all radiation can kill you, but it depends on the exposure level, the type of radiation and the exposure method.
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