Smart cars – a wise option?
Do you know how much radiation comes from the antennas on a smart car?
It’s enough to affect pedestrians nearby, according to a study by engineers from Italy.1
The research team calculated the amount of radiation from V2X (vehicle-to-everything) antennas. They explain, ‘V2X is a vehicular communications technology that entails smart connected vehicles capable of communicating with other entities, such as other vehicles …, pedestrians …, infrastructures …, and the network.’ It uses two wireless technologies: WiFi and a recent technology called Cellular-V2X.
The investigators created a model of a car, equipped with two antennas emitting radiofrequency radiation at 5.9 GHz. One of these antennas was located on the back of the car, facing skywards and the other positioned at the top of the front windscreen and tilted forward. The researchers calculated how much radiation a person standing nearby would receive.
They found, ‘the RF power was absorbed mainly in the skin of the head and at the eyes because the head/eye is the body region closer to and at the same height as the antennas.’ Highest levels of absorption (Specific Absorption Rate/SAR) were 34.7 mW/kg (milliWatts per kilogram) for the skin of the head and 15 mW/kg for the eyes.
These levels comply with Australian and international standards, but scientists have raised concerns about the adequacy of these standards for protecting public health.2
Highest levels of radiation were absorbed by a person standing close to the rear antenna because of the shorter distance between the two.
The authors say, ‘it is expected that vehicular communication will be widespread over the next years.’
With one billion, four hundred million vehicles on the road already, the amount of radiation exposure from cars and the wider wireless network could be huge.
Technology like this might be smart, but that doesn’t mean it’s a wise idea.
- Benini, M.; Parazzini, M.; Bonato, M.; Gallucci, S.; Chiaramello, E.; Fiocchi, S.; Tognola, G. Road User Exposure from ITS-5.9 GHz Vehicular Connectivity. Sensors 2022, 22, 6986. https://doi.org/10.3390/s22186986
- New international authority explains: we’re not being protected from wireless radiation
What can you do?
- Planning to buy a car? Check out the radiation it emits with our meters for measuring radiofrequency radiation here first.
- Electric cars can have high magnetic fields, so measure the magnetic fields with one of our gaussmeters.
- Learn how to make your home radiation free with our online course, Your electromagnetic-safe Home.
What else can you do?