Abnormal high radon exhalation levels on the mount Beshtau, North Caucasus

Abstract

The measurements of radon exhalation rate, radon concentration in the air, gamma-doze rate and radium content in soils on the Mount Beshtau were carried out. The very high radon levels were discovered in local zone on the western slope. The radon exhalation rate in the anomalous zone achieves 15,000 mBq/m2s, and the radon concentration in the atmospheric air exceeds 4000 Bq/m3. These levels sufficiently exceed the local background. The extremely high values of radon exhalation rate in the anomalous zone cannot be explained by local sources of radon. Anomalous levels of radon exhalation probably result from radon transport out of fracturing zones with convective air flows. This thesis is confirmed by repeated measurements