Cosmic radiation on flights from Los Angeles (LAX) to Atlanta (ATL)

Reverse: Atlanta → Los Angeles

A flight from Los Angeles International Airport to Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport at 35,000 ft, about 3 h 40 min in the air, receives about 0.012 mSv (12 µSv) of cosmic radiation: about 12% 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
12 µSv0.012 mSv
Time in the air
3 h 40 minestimated
Dose rate
3.3 µSv/haverage, 35,000 ft
Chest X‑rays
0.12at 0.1 mSv each

Key facts: LAX → ATL

Dose, standard flight0.012 mSv (12 µSv)
Time in the air3 h 40 min, estimated from distance and prevailing winds
Cruise altitude35,000 ft
Average dose rate3.3 µSv/h
Great-circle distance3,126 km (1,942 mi)
Furthest from the equator35.0°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, 3 h 40 min in the air (climb 25 min, cruise 178 min, descent 17 min), effective dose per ICRP Publication 103. How it's calculated.

LAXATL
Great-circle route, shaded from 2.9 µSv/h to 3.5 µSv/h. Shading is modelled from the monthly dose-rate grid; totals are CARI-7.

How the sun changes the dose on LAX → ATL

The sun's 11-year cycle moves this number. With the same 3 h 40 min at 35,000 ft, the flight would have received 0.0142 mSv in April 2020, when the sun was quiet and more galactic cosmic rays reached the atmosphere, and 0.00988 mSv in January 2026, near solar maximum: 43% more at the quiet end. In August 2026 it is 0.012 mSv.

Dose for this flight at 35,000 ft, quarterly
0 µSv5 µSv10 µSv15 µSv20 µSv20162018202020222024202614.2 µSv9.88 µSv12 µSv
0 µSv5 µSv10 µSv15 µSv20 µSv20162020202414.2 µSv9.88 µSv12 µSv
The numbers behind the chart
MonthDoseDose
January 201612.9 µSv0.0129 mSv
April 201613.2 µSv0.0132 mSv
July 201613.2 µSv0.0132 mSv
October 201613.5 µSv0.0135 mSv
January 201713.6 µSv0.0136 mSv
April 201713.9 µSv0.0139 mSv
July 201713.7 µSv0.0137 mSv
October 201713.6 µSv0.0136 mSv
January 201813.8 µSv0.0138 mSv
April 201814 µSv0.014 mSv
July 201814 µSv0.014 mSv
October 201814.2 µSv0.0142 mSv
January 201913.7 µSv0.0137 mSv
April 201914.1 µSv0.0141 mSv
July 201914 µSv0.014 mSv
October 201914.1 µSv0.0141 mSv
January 202014.1 µSv0.0141 mSv
April 202014.2 µSv0.0142 mSv
July 202014.1 µSv0.0141 mSv
October 202014.1 µSv0.0141 mSv
January 202113.8 µSv0.0138 mSv
April 202114.1 µSv0.0141 mSv
July 202113.9 µSv0.0139 mSv
October 202114 µSv0.014 mSv
January 202213.7 µSv0.0137 mSv
April 202213.6 µSv0.0136 mSv
July 202212.8 µSv0.0128 mSv
October 202213.1 µSv0.0131 mSv
January 202312.2 µSv0.0122 mSv
April 202312.3 µSv0.0123 mSv
July 202311.8 µSv0.0118 mSv
October 202311.8 µSv0.0118 mSv
January 202411.3 µSv0.0113 mSv
April 202411.5 µSv0.0115 mSv
July 202411.6 µSv0.0116 mSv
October 202410.4 µSv0.0104 mSv
January 202510.7 µSv0.0107 mSv
April 202510.7 µSv0.0107 mSv
July 202510.6 µSv0.0106 mSv
October 202510.8 µSv0.0108 mSv
January 20269.88 µSv0.00988 mSv
April 202611 µSv0.011 mSv
July 202611.6 µSv0.0116 mSv
August 202612 µSv0.012 mSv

How cruise altitude changes the dose

Flown at 31,000 ft instead, the same flight would receive 0.00884 mSv, 27% less than at 35,000 ft; at 41,000 ft it would receive 0.0172 mSv, 43% 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 ft8.84 µSv
  • 33,000 ft10.4 µSv
  • 35,000 ft12 µSv
  • 37,000 ft13.8 µSv
  • 39,000 ft15.5 µSv
  • 41,000 ft17.2 µSv

Try it: change the altitude and the month

Every combination is its own CARI-7 run for LAX → ATL, with the same 3 h 40 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 ft9.59.9810.11010.310.110.18.978.297.877.298.84
33,000 ft11.211.811.911.812.111.911.810.69.749.248.5510.4
35,000 ft12.913.613.813.714.113.813.712.211.310.79.8812
37,000 ft14.815.615.815.716.115.815.71412.912.211.313.8
39,000 ft16.717.617.817.718.217.817.815.714.513.712.615.5
41,000 ft18.619.619.819.720.319.819.817.51615.21417.2

The return flight: ATL → LAX

ATL → LAX receives 0.0142 mSv at 35,000 ft, 18% more than LAX → ATL, over about 4 h 14 min in the air against 3 h 40 min. The return takes 34 min longer: its track runs against 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
  • LAX → ATL12 µSv
  • ATL → LAX14.2 µSv

Cosmic radiation on Atlanta → Los Angeles flights

What 12 µSv compares with

Compared withIts doseThis flight is
Chest X-Ray0.1 mSvabout 12% of a chest X-ray
Dental X-Ray0.005 mSvabout 2.4 dental X-rays
Background Radiation (Daily)0.008 mSvabout a day's natural background radiation
Mammogram0.4 mSvabout 3% of a mammogram
Head CT Scan2 mSvabout 1% of a head CT scan
Eating a Banana0.0001 mSvabout 120 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 0.00884 mSv, 27% less than at 35,000 ft; at 41,000 ft it would receive 0.0172 mSv, 43% 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 1.6 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 43% 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.

Download on the App Store Get it on Google Play

Other routes from LAX

All about Los Angeles International Airport

Other routes to ATL

No other routes to ATL are published yet.

Every published route

Questions people ask

All questions