Originally Posted By: wildman800

Approximate Radiation Doses/Effects:
150 rads/hr = radiation sickness
250 rads/hr = military command max dosage
450 rads/hr = death


Ummm, no. Those are dose rates. If I walk through an area of 150 rad/h and it takes me 15 minutes, then I only get 38 rad, and I don't get ARS. I don't even come close. The low end for ARS is approximately 200 rad, and it will be higher for most people. The LD50/60 is around 350 rad (closer to 500 rad if there is modern medical attention available).

And GM (geiger) counters do not measure dose rate, no matter what the little piece of paper behind the needle says. They also saturate easily, becoming useless if not dangerous. They are for measuring contamination on surfaces, not external dose in an area. That is what ion chambers are for.

If you are wanting a suit to protect from contamination, go buy some tyvek coveralls. That is generally what we use to clean up spills. Nothing is going to protect you from the external radiation exposure from photons (at least nothing you could still move around in).

Greg