title: Mapping natural radioactivity of soils in the eastern Canary Islands.
abstract: The Canary Islands archipielago (Spain) comprises seven main volcanic islands and several islets that form a chain extending for around 500 km across the eastern Atlantic, between latitudes 27°N and 30°N, with its eastern edge only 100 km from the NW African coast. The administrative province of Las Palmas comprises the three eastern Canary Islands (Lanzarote, Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria). An extensive study of terrestrial gamma dose rates in surface soils has been carried out to cover the entire territory of the province (4093 km2). The average outdoor gamma dose rate in air at 1 m above ground is 73 nGyh-1at Gran Canaria, 32 nGyh-1at Fuerteventura, and 25 nGyh-1at Lanzarote. To complete the radiological characterization of this volcanic area, 350 soil samples at 0-5 cm depth were collected to cover all the geologic typologies of the islands. These samples were measured using high resolution gamma spectrometry to determine the activity concentrations of226Ra,232Th and40K. The average values obtained were 25.2 Bq/kg, 28.9 Bq/kg, and 384.4 Bq/kg, respectively. Maps of terrestrial gamma activity, effective dose, and activity concentrations of226Ra,232Th and40K for the region have been developed through the use of geostatistical interpolation techniques. These maps are in accord with the geology of the islands.
authors.affiliation: Dpto. Física, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Arnedo
authors.affiliation: Dpto. Física, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. Electronic address: jesus.garciarubiano@ulpgc.es.
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Rubiano
authors.affiliation: Dpto. Física, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Alonso
authors.affiliation: Dpto. Física, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tejera
authors.affiliation: Dpto. Física, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: González
authors.affiliation: Dpto. Física, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: González
authors.affiliation: Dpto. Física, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Gil
authors.affiliation: Dpto. Física, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rodríguez
authors.affiliation: Dpto. Física, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Martel
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Física Aplicada, Universidad de Huelva, Campus de Excelencia Internacional del Mar (CEIMAR), 21071 Huelva, Spain.
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Bolivar
mesh_terms: D001417:Background Radiation; D062312:Islands; D011834:Radiation Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D011851:Radioactivity; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*; D013030:Spain; D013051:Spectrometry, Gamma
chemical_list: D012987:Soil; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive
keywords: Environmental radioactivity; Gamma-ray spectrometry; Natural radioisotopes; Outdoor gamma absorbed dose; Radiological maps