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

Reverse: Dubai → London

A flight from London Heathrow Airport to Dubai International Airport at 35,000 ft, about 6 h 10 min in the air, receives about 0.0165 mSv (16.5 µSv) of cosmic radiation: about 17% 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
16.5 µSv0.0165 mSv
Time in the air
6 h 10 minestimated
Dose rate
2.7 µSv/haverage, 35,000 ft
Chest X‑rays
0.17at 0.1 mSv each

Key facts: LHR → DXB

Dose, standard flight0.0165 mSv (16.5 µSv)
Time in the air6 h 10 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, 6 h 10 min in the air (climb 25 min, cruise 328 min, descent 17 min), effective dose per ICRP Publication 103. How it's calculated.

LHRDXB
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 LHR → DXB

The sun's 11-year cycle moves this number. With the same 6 h 10 min at 35,000 ft, the flight would have received 0.0187 mSv in April 2020, when the sun was quiet and more galactic cosmic rays reached the atmosphere, and 0.0142 mSv in January 2026, near solar maximum: 32% more at the quiet end. In August 2026 it is 0.0165 mSv.

Dose for this flight at 35,000 ft, quarterly
0 µSv10 µSv20 µSv30 µSv20162018202020222024202618.7 µSv14.2 µSv16.5 µSv
0 µSv10 µSv20 µSv30 µSv20162020202418.7 µSv14.2 µSv16.5 µSv
The numbers behind the chart
MonthDoseDose
January 201617.5 µSv0.0175 mSv
April 201617.8 µSv0.0178 mSv
July 201617.7 µSv0.0177 mSv
October 201618.1 µSv0.0181 mSv
January 201718.2 µSv0.0182 mSv
April 201718.4 µSv0.0184 mSv
July 201718.2 µSv0.0182 mSv
October 201718.1 µSv0.0181 mSv
January 201818.3 µSv0.0183 mSv
April 201818.6 µSv0.0186 mSv
July 201818.5 µSv0.0185 mSv
October 201818.7 µSv0.0187 mSv
January 201918.2 µSv0.0182 mSv
April 201918.7 µSv0.0187 mSv
July 201918.6 µSv0.0186 mSv
October 201918.7 µSv0.0187 mSv
January 202018.6 µSv0.0186 mSv
April 202018.7 µSv0.0187 mSv
July 202018.7 µSv0.0187 mSv
October 202018.7 µSv0.0187 mSv
January 202118.3 µSv0.0183 mSv
April 202118.7 µSv0.0187 mSv
July 202118.5 µSv0.0185 mSv
October 202118.5 µSv0.0185 mSv
January 202218.3 µSv0.0183 mSv
April 202218.2 µSv0.0182 mSv
July 202217.3 µSv0.0173 mSv
October 202217.6 µSv0.0176 mSv
January 202316.7 µSv0.0167 mSv
April 202316.8 µSv0.0168 mSv
July 202316.3 µSv0.0163 mSv
October 202316.3 µSv0.0163 mSv
January 202415.7 µSv0.0157 mSv
April 202416 µSv0.016 mSv
July 202416.1 µSv0.0161 mSv
October 202414.8 µSv0.0148 mSv
January 202515.1 µSv0.0151 mSv
April 202515.1 µSv0.0151 mSv
July 202515 µSv0.015 mSv
October 202515.3 µSv0.0153 mSv
January 202614.2 µSv0.0142 mSv
April 202615.4 µSv0.0154 mSv
July 202616.1 µSv0.0161 mSv
August 202616.5 µSv0.0165 mSv

How cruise altitude changes the dose

Flown at 31,000 ft instead, the same flight would receive 0.0123 mSv, 26% less than at 35,000 ft; at 41,000 ft it would receive 0.0231 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 ft12.3 µSv
  • 33,000 ft14.3 µSv
  • 35,000 ft16.5 µSv
  • 37,000 ft18.8 µSv
  • 39,000 ft21 µSv
  • 41,000 ft23.1 µSv

Try it: change the altitude and the month

Every combination is its own CARI-7 run for LHR → DXB, with the same 6 h 10 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 ft1313.513.613.513.813.613.512.411.711.210.612.3
33,000 ft15.215.815.915.816.215.915.914.513.713.112.314.3
35,000 ft17.518.218.318.218.618.318.316.715.715.114.216.5
37,000 ft19.920.720.820.721.220.820.81917.817.116.118.8
39,000 ft22.223.123.323.223.823.323.321.219.919.117.921
41,000 ft24.525.525.725.626.225.725.723.421.92119.723.1

The return flight: DXB → LHR

DXB → LHR receives 0.0192 mSv at 35,000 ft, 16% more than LHR → DXB, over about 7 h 2 min in the air against 6 h 10 min. The return takes 52 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
  • LHR → DXB16.5 µSv
  • DXB → LHR19.2 µSv

Cosmic radiation on Dubai → London flights

What 16.5 µSv compares with

Compared withIts doseThis flight is
Chest X-Ray0.1 mSvabout 17% of a chest X-ray
Dental X-Ray0.005 mSvabout 3.3 dental X-rays
Background Radiation (Daily)0.008 mSvabout 2.1 days of natural background radiation
Mammogram0.4 mSvabout 4% of a mammogram
Head CT Scan2 mSvabout 1% of a head CT scan
Eating a Banana0.0001 mSvabout 165 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 0.0123 mSv, 26% less than at 35,000 ft; at 41,000 ft it would receive 0.0231 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 1.3 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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