Cosmic radiation on flights from Dubai (DXB) to London (LHR)

Reverse: London → Dubai

A flight from Dubai International Airport to London Heathrow Airport at 35,000 ft, about 7 h 2 min in the air, receives about 0.0192 mSv (19.2 µSv) of cosmic radiation: about a fifth of a chest X-ray. That is the FAA's CARI-7 model run for this route with the solar conditions of August 2026.

Updated · solar conditions of August 2026

Dose
19.2 µSv0.0192 mSv
Time in the air
7 h 2 minestimated
Dose rate
2.7 µSv/haverage, 35,000 ft
Chest X‑rays
0.19at 0.1 mSv each

Key facts: DXB → LHR

Dose, standard flight0.0192 mSv (19.2 µSv)
Time in the air7 h 2 min, estimated from distance and prevailing winds
Cruise altitude35,000 ft
Average dose rate2.7 µSv/h
Great-circle distance5,497 km (3,416 mi)
Furthest from the equator51.5°N
Solar conditionsAugust 2026

The standard flight is CARI-7, the FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute's model, run on the dev machine for this route: 35,000 ft, 7 h 2 min in the air (climb 25 min, cruise 380 min, descent 17 min), effective dose per ICRP Publication 103. How it's calculated.

DXBLHR
Great-circle route, shaded from 1.6 µSv/h to 3.8 µSv/h. Shading is modelled from the monthly dose-rate grid; totals are CARI-7.

How the sun changes the dose on DXB → LHR

The sun's 11-year cycle moves this number. With the same 7 h 2 min at 35,000 ft, the flight would have received 0.0218 mSv in April 2020, when the sun was quiet and more galactic cosmic rays reached the atmosphere, and 0.0165 mSv in January 2026, near solar maximum: 32% more at the quiet end. In August 2026 it is 0.0192 mSv.

Dose for this flight at 35,000 ft, quarterly
0 µSv10 µSv20 µSv30 µSv20162018202020222024202621.8 µSv16.5 µSv19.2 µSv
0 µSv10 µSv20 µSv30 µSv20162020202421.8 µSv16.5 µSv19.2 µSv
The numbers behind the chart
MonthDoseDose
January 201620.4 µSv0.0204 mSv
April 201620.7 µSv0.0207 mSv
July 201620.6 µSv0.0206 mSv
October 201621 µSv0.021 mSv
January 201721.2 µSv0.0212 mSv
April 201721.5 µSv0.0215 mSv
July 201721.2 µSv0.0212 mSv
October 201721.1 µSv0.0211 mSv
January 201821.3 µSv0.0213 mSv
April 201821.6 µSv0.0216 mSv
July 201821.6 µSv0.0216 mSv
October 201821.8 µSv0.0218 mSv
January 201921.2 µSv0.0212 mSv
April 201921.8 µSv0.0218 mSv
July 201921.6 µSv0.0216 mSv
October 201921.8 µSv0.0218 mSv
January 202021.7 µSv0.0217 mSv
April 202021.8 µSv0.0218 mSv
July 202021.8 µSv0.0217 mSv
October 202021.8 µSv0.0217 mSv
January 202121.4 µSv0.0214 mSv
April 202121.8 µSv0.0218 mSv
July 202121.5 µSv0.0215 mSv
October 202121.6 µSv0.0216 mSv
January 202221.3 µSv0.0213 mSv
April 202221.2 µSv0.0212 mSv
July 202220.2 µSv0.0202 mSv
October 202220.5 µSv0.0205 mSv
January 202319.4 µSv0.0194 mSv
April 202319.6 µSv0.0196 mSv
July 202318.9 µSv0.0189 mSv
October 202319 µSv0.019 mSv
January 202418.3 µSv0.0183 mSv
April 202418.6 µSv0.0186 mSv
July 202418.7 µSv0.0187 mSv
October 202417.1 µSv0.0171 mSv
January 202517.5 µSv0.0175 mSv
April 202517.6 µSv0.0176 mSv
July 202517.4 µSv0.0174 mSv
October 202517.7 µSv0.0177 mSv
January 202616.5 µSv0.0165 mSv
April 202617.9 µSv0.0179 mSv
July 202618.7 µSv0.0187 mSv
August 202619.2 µSv0.0192 mSv

How cruise altitude changes the dose

Flown at 31,000 ft instead, the same flight would receive 0.0143 mSv, 26% less than at 35,000 ft; at 41,000 ft it would receive 0.0269 mSv, 40% more. Same route, same time in the air, same month: only the air overhead changes.

Dose for this flight by cruise altitude, August 2026
  • 31,000 ft14.3 µSv
  • 33,000 ft16.7 µSv
  • 35,000 ft19.2 µSv
  • 37,000 ft21.8 µSv
  • 39,000 ft24.4 µSv
  • 41,000 ft26.9 µSv

Try it: change the altitude and the month

Every combination is its own CARI-7 run for DXB → LHR, with the same 7 h 2 min in the air. It is still a standard flight, not yours: the app calculates your exact flight.

Every combination as a table (µSv)
AltitudeJan 2016Jan 2017Jan 2018Jan 2019Jan 2020Jan 2021Jan 2022Jan 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Aug 2026
31,000 ft15.115.715.815.716.115.815.814.413.61312.314.3
33,000 ft17.718.418.518.418.818.518.516.915.915.214.316.7
35,000 ft20.421.221.321.221.721.421.319.418.317.516.519.2
37,000 ft23.124.124.324.124.724.324.222.120.719.918.721.8
39,000 ft25.92727.22727.727.227.124.723.222.220.924.4
41,000 ft28.529.73029.830.53029.927.225.524.422.926.9

The return flight: LHR → DXB

LHR → DXB receives 0.0165 mSv at 35,000 ft, 14% less than DXB → LHR, over about 6 h 10 min in the air against 7 h 2 min. The return is 52 min shorter: its track runs with the prevailing westerly winds at cruise altitude. Cosmic radiation builds up with every minute aloft, so the longer direction collects more of it along the same path.

Dose for each direction, standard flight
  • DXB → LHR19.2 µSv
  • LHR → DXB16.5 µSv

Cosmic radiation on London → Dubai flights

What 19.2 µSv compares with

Compared withIts doseThis flight is
Chest X-Ray0.1 mSvabout a fifth of a chest X-ray
Dental X-Ray0.005 mSvabout 3.8 dental X-rays
Background Radiation (Daily)0.008 mSvabout 2.4 days of natural background radiation
Mammogram0.4 mSvabout 5% of a mammogram
Head CT Scan2 mSvabout 1% of a head CT scan
Eating a Banana0.0001 mSvabout 192 bananas

The comparison values are the ones the FlightDose app uses.

Why your flight will differ

  • Altitude. Flown at 31,000 ft instead, the same flight would receive 0.0143 mSv, 26% less than at 35,000 ft; at 41,000 ft it would receive 0.0269 mSv, 40% more. Same route, same time in the air, same month: only the air overhead changes.
  • Time in the air. Every extra 30 minutes on this route adds about 1.4 µSv. Headwinds, holding and routing change it by tens of minutes on a long flight.
  • The month. The sun's 11-year cycle swings this route's dose by about 32% between quiet and active years.
  • The track. Airlines fly tracks that bend with the jet stream, not the exact great circle; a track further from the equator collects more.
  • Solar storms. A rare solar radiation storm can add to the dose for hours; CARI-7's monthly figures don't include one.

FlightDose calculates your exact flight.

Your date, your altitude, your time in the air, with live space weather, and a running total against the limits that matter to you.

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