Radio wave radiation

Radio waves are a type of electromagnetic radiation best-known for their use in
communication technologies, such as television, mobile phones and radios. These
devices receive radio waves and convert them to mechanical vibrations in the speaker
to create sound waves.

The radio-frequency spectrum is a relatively small part of the electromagnetic (EM)

spectrum. The EM spectrum is generally divided into seven regions in order of
decreasing wavelength and increasing energy and frequency, according to
the University of Rochester. The common designations are radio
waves, microwaves, infrared (IR), visible light, ultraviolet (UV), X-rays and gamma-rays.
Radio waves have the longest wavelengths in the EM spectrum, according to NASA,
ranging from about 0.04 inches (1 millimeter) to more than 62 miles (100 kilometers).
They also have the lowest frequencies, from about 3,000 cycles per second, or 3
kilohertz, up to about 300 billion hertz, or 300 gigahertz.
The radio spectrum is a limited resource and is often compared to farmland. Just as
farmers must organize their land to achieve the best harvest regarding quantity and
variety, the radio spectrum must be split among users in the most efficient way,
according to the British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC). In the U.S., the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration within the United States
Department of Commerce manages the frequency allocations along the radio spectrum.

Discovery
Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell, who developed a unified theory of
electromagnetism in the 1870s, predicted the existence of radio waves, according to
the National Library of Scotland. In 1886, Heinrich Hertz, a German physicist, applied
Maxwell's theories to the production and reception of radio waves. Hertz used simple
homemade tools, including an induction coil and a Leyden jar (an early type of capacitor
consisting of a glass jar with foil layers both inside and out) to create electromagnetic
waves. Hertz became the first person to transmit and receive controlled radio waves.
The unit of frequency of an EM wave — one cycle per second — is called a hertz, in his
honor, according to the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
 The Electromagnetic Spectrum
The electromagnetic (EM) spectrum is the range of all types of EM radiation.
Radiation is energy that travels and spreads out as it goes – the visible
light that comes from a lamp in your house and the radio waves that come from
a radio station are two types of electromagnetic radiation. The other types of
EM radiation that make up the electromagnetic spectrum
are microwaves, infrared light, ultraviolet light, X-rays and gamma-rays.

You know more about the electromagnetic spectrum than you may think. The
image below shows where you might encounter each portion of the EM
spectrum in your day-to-day life.
Radio: Your radio captures radio waves emitted by radio stations, bringing
your favorite tunes. Radio waves are also emitted by stars and gases in space.

Microwave: Microwave radiation will cook your popcorn in just a few minutes,
but is also used by astronomers to learn about the structure of nearby galaxies.

Infrared: Night vision goggles pick up the infrared light emitted by our skin
and objects with heat. In space, infrared light helps us map the dust between
stars.

Visible: Our eyes detect visible light. Fireflies, light bulbs, and stars all emit
visible light.

Ultraviolet: Ultraviolet radiation is emitted by the Sun and are the reason skin
tans and burns. "Hot" objects in space emit UV radiation as well.

X-ray: A dentist uses X-rays to image your teeth, and airport security uses
them to see through your bag. Hot gases in the Universe also emit X-rays.

Gamma ray: Doctors use gamma-ray imaging to see inside your body. The
biggest gamma-ray generator of all is the Universe.

Is a radio wave the same as a gamma ray?

Are radio waves completely different physical objects than gamma-rays? They
are produced in different processes and are detected in different ways, but
they are not fundamentally different. Radio waves, gamma-rays, visible light,
and all the other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum are electromagnetic
radiation.

Electromagnetic radiation can be described in terms of a stream of mass-less

particles, called photons, each traveling in a wave-like pattern at the speed of
light. Each photon contains a certain amount of energy. The different types of
radiation are defined by the the amount of energy found in the photons. Radio
waves have photons with low energies, microwave photons have a little more
energy than radio waves, infrared photons have still more, then visible,
ultraviolet, X-rays, and, the most energetic of all, gamma-rays.

Measuring electromagnetic radiation

Electromagnetic radiation can be expressed in terms of energy, wavelength,
or frequency. Frequency is measured in cycles per second, or Hertz.
Wavelength is measured in meters. Energy is measured in electron volts. Each
of these three quantities for describing EM radiation are related to each other
in a precise mathematical way. But why have three ways of describing things,
each with a different set of physical units?

Comparison of wavelength, frequency and energy for the electromagnetic spectrum. (Credit:
NASA's Imagine the Universe)

The short answer is that scientists don't like to use numbers any bigger or
smaller than they have to. It is much easier to say or write "two kilometers"
than "two thousand meters." Generally, scientists use whatever units are
easiest for the type of EM radiation they work with.

Astronomers who study radio waves tend to use wavelengths or frequencies.

Most of the radio part of the EM spectrum falls in the range from about 1 cm to
1 km, which is 30 gigahertz (GHz) to 300 kilohertz (kHz) in frequencies. The
radio is a very broad part of the EM spectrum.

Infrared and optical astronomers generally use wavelength. Infrared

astronomers use microns (millionths of a meter) for wavelengths, so their part
of the EM spectrum falls in the range of 1 to 100 microns. Optical astronomers
use both angstroms (0.00000001 cm, or 10-8 cm) and nanometers (0.0000001
cm, or 10-7 cm). Using nanometers, violet, blue, green, yellow, orange, and
red light have wavelengths between 400 and 700 nanometers. (This range is
just a tiny part of the entire EM spectrum, so the light our eyes can see is just
a little fraction of all the EM radiation around us.)

The wavelengths of ultraviolet, X-ray, and gamma-ray regions of the EM

spectrum are very small. Instead of using wavelengths, astronomers that
study these portions of the EM spectrum usually refer to these photons by
their energies, measured in electron volts (eV). Ultraviolet radiation falls in the
range from a few electron volts to about 100 eV. X-ray photons have energies
in the range 100 eV to 100,000 eV (or 100 keV). Gamma-rays then are all the
photons with energies greater than 100 keV.

Why do we put telescopes in orbit?

Most electromagnetic radiation from space is unable to reach the surface of

the Earth. Radio frequencies, visible light and some ultraviolet light makes it to
sea level. Astronomers can observe some infrared wavelengths by putting
telescopes on mountain tops. Balloon experiments can reach 35 km above
the surface and can operate for months. Rocket flights can take instruments
all the way above the Earth's atmosphere, but only for a few minutes before
they fall back to Earth.

For long-term observations, however, it is best to have your detector on an

orbiting satellite and get above it all!
Radio wave radiation pictures
Microwaves, Radio Waves,
and Other Types of
Radiofrequency Radiation
What is radiofrequency (RF)
radiation?
Radiation is the emission (sending out) of energy from any source. X-rays are
an example of radiation, but so is the light that comes from the sun and the
heat that is constantly coming off our bodies.

When talking about radiation and cancer, many people think of specific kinds
of radiation such as x-rays or the radiation made by nuclear reactors. But
there are other types of radiation that act differently.

Radiation exists across a spectrum from very high-energy (high-frequency)

radiation to very low-energy (low-frequency) radiation. This is sometimes
referred to as the electromagnetic spectrum.

Examples of high-energy radiation include x-rays and gamma rays. They, as

well as some higher energy UV radiation, are called ionizing radiation, which
means they have enough energy to remove an electron from (ionize) an atom
or molecule. This can damage the DNA inside of cells, which can result in
cancer.

Radiofrequency (RF) radiation, which includes radio waves and microwaves,

is at the low-energy end of the electromagnetic spectrum. It is a type of non-
ionizing radiation. Non-ionizing radiation has enough energy to move atoms in
a molecule around or cause them to vibrate, but not enough to ionize (remove
charged particles such as electrons). RF radiation has lower energy than
some other types of non-ionizing radiation, like visible light and infrared, but it
has higher energy than extremely low-frequency (ELF) radiation.

If RF radiation is absorbed in large enough amounts by materials containing

water, such as food, fluids, and body tissues, it can produce heat. This can
lead to burns and tissue damage. Although RF radiation does not cause
cancer by damaging DNA in cells the way ionizing radiation does, there has
been concern that some forms of non-ionizing radiation might have biological
effects that could result in cancer in some circumstances.

How are people exposed to RF

radiation?
People can be exposed to RF radiation from both natural and man-made
sources.

Natural sources include:

 Outer space and the sun

 The sky – including lightning strikes
 The earth itself – most radiation from the earth is infrared, but a tiny
fraction is RF
Man-made RF radiation is used for many different things, such as

 Broadcasting radio and television signals

 Transmitting signals from cordless telephones, cell phones and cell
phone towers, satellite phones, and 2-way radios
 Radar
 WiFi and Bluetooth
  Cooking food (in a microwave oven)
 Heating body tissues to destroy them in medical procedures
 “Welding” pieces of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) using certain machines
 Millimeter wave scanners (a type of full body scanner used for security
screening)
Some people can have significant RF exposure as part of their jobs. This
includes PVC welders, people who maintain antenna towers that broadcast
communication signals, and people who use or maintain radar equipment.

Most people are exposed to much lower levels of man-made RF radiation

every day due to the presence of RF signals all around us. They come from
radio and television broadcasts, WiFi and Bluetooth, cell phones (and cell
phone towers), and other sources.

Microwave ovens
Microwave ovens work by using very high levels of a certain frequency of RF
radiation (in the microwave spectrum) to heat foods. When microwaves are
absorbed by food containing water, it causes the water molecules to vibrate,
which produces heat. Microwaves do not use x-rays or gamma rays, and they
do not make food radioactive. Microwave ovens can cook food, but they do
not otherwise change the chemical or molecular structure of it.

Microwave ovens are designed so that the microwaves are contained within
the oven itself. The oven only makes microwaves when the door is shut and
the oven is turned on. When microwave ovens are used according to
instructions, there is no evidence that they pose a health risk to people. In the
US, federal standards limit the amount of radiation that can leak from a
microwave oven to a level far below what would harm people. Ovens that are
damaged or modified, however, could allow microwaves to leak out, and so
could pose a hazard to people nearby by potentially causing burns.
Although some people have been injured from microwave ovens, most often
they have been burns from contact with steam or hot food.

Full-body security scanners

In many airports in the United States, the Transportation Security
Administration (TSA) uses full body scanners to screen passengers. The
scanners currently used by the TSA use millimeter wave imaging. These
scanners send out a small amount of millimeter wave radiation (a type of RF
radiation) toward the person in the scanner. The RF radiation passes through
clothing and bounces off the person’s skin as well as any objects under the
clothes. The radiation is sensed by receivers that create images of the person.

Millimeter wave scanners do not use x-rays (or any other kind of high-energy
radiation) and the amount of RF radiation used is very low. According to the
US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), these scanners have no known
health effects. However, TSA often allows people to be screened in a different
way if they object to screening with these scanners.

Cell phones and cell phone towers

Cell phones and cell phone towers use RF radiation to transmit and receive
signals. Some concerns have been raised that these signals might increase
the risk of cancer, and research in this area continues. For more detailed
information, see Cellular Phones and Cellular Phone Towers.

Does RF radiation cause cancer?

Researchers use 2 main types of studies to try to determine if something
might cause cancer.
  Lab studies: In studies done in the lab, animals are exposed to a
chemical or physical agent (such as RF energy) to see if it causes
tumors or other health problems. Researchers might also expose
normal human cells in a lab dish to see if it causes the types of changes
that are seen in cancer cells. It’s not always clear if the results from
these types of studies will apply to humans, but lab studies allow
researchers to carefully control for other factors that might affect the
results and to answer some basic science questions.
 Studies in people: Another type of study looks at cancer rates in
different groups of people. Such a study might compare the cancer rate
in a group exposed to something like RF energy to the rate in a group
not exposed to it, or compare it to what the expected cancer rate would
be in the general population. But sometimes it can be hard to know what
the results of these studies mean, because many other factors might
affect the results.
Often neither type of study provides enough evidence on its own, so
researchers usually look at both lab-based and human studies when trying to
figure out if something causes cancer.

Studies done in the lab

Most lab studies done so far have supported the idea that RF waves don't
have enough energy to damage DNA directly. Because of this, it’s not clear
how RF radiation might be able to cause cancer.

A few studies have reported evidence of biological effects that could be linked
to cancer, but this is still an area of research.

A study by the US National Toxicology Program (NTP) exposed large groups

of lab rats and mice to types of RF energy used in cell phones. The animals
were exposed over their entire bodies for about 9 hours a day, starting before
birth and continuing for up to 2 years. The study found an increased risk of
rare heart tumors called malignant schwannomas in the male rats exposed to
RF radiation, as well as possible increased risks of certain types of tumors in
the brain and adrenal glands. However, there was no clear increased risk
among female rats or among male or female mice in the study. The male rats
also lived longer than rats who were not exposed to RF radiation, for unclear
reasons. Some aspects of this study make it hard to know what these results
might mean for people, but the results add evidence to the idea that RF
radiation might potentially impact human health.

Studies in people
Studies of people who may have been exposed to RF radiation at their jobs
(such as people who work around or with radar equipment, those who service
communication antennae, and radio operators) have found no clear increase
in cancer risk.

A number of studies have looked at the possible link between cell phones and
cancer. Although some studies have shown a possible link, many others have
not. The possible link between cell phones and cancer is hard to study for
many reasons, including the relatively short time that cell phones have been in
widespread use, changes in the technology over time, and difficulty in
estimating each person’s exposure. The possible link between cell phones
and cancer risk is discussed in detail in Cellular Phones.

What do expert agencies say?

Several national and international agencies study exposures and substances
in the environment to determine if they can cause cancer. (An exposure or
substance that causes cancer or helps cancer grow is called a carcinogen.)
The American Cancer Society looks to these organizations to evaluate the
risks based on evidence from laboratory, animal, and human research
studies.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) is part of the

World Health Organization. One of its goals is to identify causes of cancer.
IARC has stated that there is limited evidence that RF radiation causes cancer
in animals and humans, and classifies RF radiation as “possibly carcinogenic
to humans” (Group 2B). This was based on the finding of a possible link in at
least one study between cell phone use and a specific type of brain tumor.
IARC considers the evidence overall to be “limited” because of the conflicting
findings and methodologic limitations in some of the studies.

(For more information on the classification system IARC uses, see Known and
Probable Human Carcinogens.)

The other main agencies that classify cancer-causing exposures

(carcinogens), including the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and
the US National Toxicology Program (NTP), have not formally classified RF
radiation as to its cancer-causing potential.

Does RF radiation cause any other

health problems?
Studies in the lab
In animals, the main effects of exposure to RF are related to heating
(sometimes called thermal effects). High doses of RF radiation can raise body
temperature, even to the point of being fatal. Focusing RF radiation on one
area of the body can lead to burns and the breakdown of tissue. When RF
waves are focused on the eye, it can cause cataracts to form.

It isn’t clear what effects, if any, RF radiation has at levels of exposure too low
to produce heating.

In people
High doses of RF radiation can cause injuries through heating. For example,
some people accidentally exposed to large amounts of RF radiation from
radar equipment have developed severe burns. But it’s not clear if exposure to
lower levels of RF radiation, even over long periods of time, can have harmful
health effects.

People who are near microwave radar equipment can be exposed to enough
pulsed microwave radiation (a type of RF radiation) that they begin to hear
clicking noises. This is sometimes called RF hearing and does not seem to
cause long term health problems.

Although there is concern that people exposed to low levels of microwaves

over long periods of time in their jobs could have an increased risk of
cataracts or loss of fertility (in men), this has not been seen in large studies.

How can I avoid exposure to RF

radiation?
Because sources of RF radiation are so common in the modern environment,
there is no way to completely avoid exposure to it. It may be possible to lower
your exposure to RF radiation by avoiding jobs with increased RF exposure,
keeping away from appliances and equipment that use RF, and using devices
that allow mobile phones to be used without placing them against the ear.
Still, it isn’t clear that doing so will be helpful in terms of health risks.
Wireless communication is the transfer of information between two or more points that
are not connected by an electrical conductor. The term is commonly used in the
telecommunications industry to refer to telecommunications systems (e.g., radio
transmitters and receivers, remote controls, etc.) that use some form of energy (e.g.,
radio waves, acoustic energy, etc.) to transfer information without the use of wires.
Information is transferred in this manner over both short and long distances. Wireless
operations permit services, such as long-range communications, that are otherwise
impossible (or impractical) to implement with the use of wires.

The most common wireless technologies use electromagnetic wireless

telecommunications, such as radio or infra-red signals. With infra-red waves, distances
are short (such as a few meters for television remote control) while radio waves can
reach as far as thousands or even millions of kilometers for deep-space radio
communications. It encompasses various types of fixed, mobile, and portable
applications, including two-way radios, cellular telephones, personal digital assistants
(PDAs), and wireless networking. Other examples of applications of radio wireless
technology include GPS units, garage door openers, wireless computer mice,
keyboards and headsets, headphones, radio receivers, satellite television, broadcast
television, and cordless telephones. Less common methods of achieving wireless
communications include the use of light, sound, magnetic, or electric fields.

Two cellular phones: The Qualcomm QCP-2700, a mid-1990s candybar style phone, and an iPhone 4S, a
current production smartphone.
One of the best-known examples of wireless technology is the mobile (or cellular)
phone, with more than 4.6 billion mobile cellular subscriptions worldwide as of the end
of 2010 (examples of such phones are shown in ). These wireless devices use radio
waves to enable their users to make phone calls from many locations worldwide. They
can be used within range of the mobile telephone sites that house the necessary
equipment to transmit and receive the radio signals these devices emit. Wireless data
communications are also an essential component of mobile computing. The various
available technologies differ in local availability, coverage range, and performance. In
some circumstances, users must be able to employ multiple connection types and
switch between them.

To simplify the experience for the user, connection manager software is available, or a
mobile VPN can be utilized to handle the multiple connections as a secure, single virtual
network. One popular supporting technology is Wi-Fi, a wireless local area network that
enables portable computing devices to connect easily to the Internet. Standardized as
IEEE 802.11 a,b,g,n, Wi-Fi approaches speeds of some types of wired Ethernet. Wi-Fi
has become the de facto standard for access in private homes, within offices, and at
public hotspots. Some businesses charge customers a monthly fee for the service,
while others offer it for free in an effort to increase sales of their goods.

Cellular data service offers coverage within a range of 10-15 miles from the nearest cell
site. Speeds have increased as technologies have evolved, from earlier technologies
such as GSM, CDMA and GPRS, to 3G networks such as W-CDMA, EDGE or
CDMA2000. Mobile Satellite Communications may be used where other wireless
connections are unavailable, such as in largely rural areas or remote locations. Satellite
communications are especially important for transportation, aviation, maritime, and
military use.