Euratom Research: The unexplored territory of low-dose radiation

Radiation – the word immediately evokes the dreadful fallout of nuclear bombs or the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster. Yet radiation is also a useful weapon in the therapeutic arsenal, for medical imaging as well as combating cancer. More subtly, it is also present in our everyday environment that is home to an increasing variety of ionising radiation of natural or technological origin – but which is not considered a danger as it is far below the acceptable safety levels. The real long-term effects of this background radiation are nevertheless a mystery, which is why they are currently being investigated by the Risc-Rad project.