Kansas Background Radiation Study
The Kansas Environmental Public Health Tracking program in collaboration with the Kansas Radiation Control program have conducted a background radiation sampling study as part of a state-wide environmental radiation surveillance project. The purpose of the study was to establish a baseline data set based on ground measurements for background gamma radiation levels for uranium, thorium, and radium activities in the soil. The samples collected for the study were taken from areas that have not been impacted by human activity. The data will help to identify areas of uranium, thorium, and radium concentration and correlate those levels with other sources of data related to Kansas geology.
You can access the report by clicking on Kansas Radiation Background Report to download a PDF copy. The report provides information about the study and includes relevant graphs, maps, and methods.
Kansas Background Radiation Map
U.S. Geological Survey Map of Ternary Gamma-ray Concentrations
Click on the image below to go to the USGS map.
U.S. Geological Survey Map of Uranium Concentrations
Click on the map image below for the USGS Uranium map.
U.S. Geological Survey Map of Thorium Concentrations
Click on the image below to go to the USGS map.
