The Transportation Security Administration said this week that it would conduct new tests to measure potential radiation hazards from the scanning machines at more than 100 airports. But the TSA does not plan to test the machines themselves or to measure radiation exposure for passengers. The agency plans to test only its airport security officers to see if they are being exposed to dangerous levels of radiation while working with the scanners. “We still have no idea how much radiation is being imposed on travelers by a properly functioning machine,” said James Babb, co-founder of We Won’t Fly, a consumer advocacy group. “A malfunctioning machine could be particularly nasty.”
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.