Orders of magnitude (radiation) Orders of magnitude (radiation) Recognized effects of higher acute radiation doses are described in more detail in the article on radiation poisoning. Although the International System of Units (SI) defines the sievert (Sv) as the unit of radiation dose equivalent, chronic radiation levels and standards are still often given in units of millirems (mrem), where 1 mrem equals 1/1000 of a rem and 1 rem equals 0.01 Sv. Light radiation sickness begins at about 50–100 rad (0.5–1 gray (Gy), 0.5–1 Sv, 50–100 rem, 50,000–100,000 mrem). The following table includes some dosages for comparison purposes, using millisieverts (mSv) (one thousandth of
Non-ionizing radiation number of ionizing X-rays purely as a product of heating the atmosphere around the bomb to extremely high temperatures. As noted above, even low-frequency thermal radiation may cause temperature-ionization whenever it deposits sufficient thermal energy to raises temperatures to a high enough level. Common examples of this are the ionization (plasma) seen in common flames, and the molecular changes caused by the "browning" in food-cooking, which is a chemical process that begins with a large component of ionization. "Black body radiation" is radiation from an idealized radiator that emits at any temperature the maximum possible amount of radiation at any