I've always assumed that our canopies protect us from UV radiation, but a study reported by Reuters has raised doubts:
For the new study, the researchers placed UV index meters in the pilot seat of a small turboprop light business and utility airplane with six passenger seats and a plastic windshield.
They took radiation measurements at ground level and at regular altitude increments in flight, and took readings in two locations, San Jose, California and Las Vegas, Nevada.
Then they took the same UV measurements inside a tanning bed.
According to their measurements, published in JAMA Dermatology, the aircraft windshield blocked UV-B but not UV-A radiation.
UV-A is the most abundant source of solar radiation at the earth's surface and penetrates beyond the top layer of human skin, increasing the risk for skin cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. UV-B can cause some forms of skin cancer as well, but does not penetrate the skin as deeply.
The researchers calculated that 56 minutes in the pilot’s seat of the plane at 30,000 feet resulted in the same carcinogenic-effective dose of UV-A radiation as a 20-minute tanning session.
Anybody know if ours are any better, and if exposure is less at lower altitudes?
No question, I definitely get sunburned if I don't use sunscreen. I think at some point they switched to a tinted canopy, not sure when. Mine is clear.
I have thought about this for years, especially in my old Dakota where I always had a burned left arm. I read the new article in JAMA.
Not to minimize the point because it is important; the known harmful energy that can be blocked follows the inverse square law and this research was at 30,000 ft. You can do the math at your typical altitude. Also, as I recall, there were some other methodological issues that made me file the study in the mental second drawer. There are narrow and broad spectrum UV blocking agents that are routinely added to the plastics in eyeglass lenses (I think it is a law in the US), either as a coating or in the plastic compound. It would have been easy enough for Diamond to do this as well. Maybe someone who has a good communications channel with them can find out if they did.
rwtucker wrote:It would have been easy enough for Diamond to do this as well. Maybe someone who has a good communications channel with them can find out if they did.
I assume someone at the factory in Austria would know, but they don't handle after sales support there, so I don't know who to ask.
