Exhibition research display object 15: Protective gear

During our research trip in Hungary with the curatorial team and participating artists, we visited the Paks Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) and the Bátaapáti repository—sites from where this protective gear originates. We playfully tried on these outfits in the Repair and Training Center of the NPP, a facility equipped with a real reactor and steam generator used to train nuclear professionals. Since the reactor in this training facility has never been operational, there was no risk of radioactive contamination or exposure—two primary ways radiation can harm living bodies. Following this, we underwent security checks and toured one of the operational blocks of the NPP, wearing only helmets. Despite reassurances that in the visitor areas there is no danger and the recurring theme of the tour, the rigorousness of safety protocols, we couldn’t shake a subtle sense of unease while navigating this immense machinery harboring such an invisible yet powerful danger. The next day, we repeated the ritual of security checks and clothes changing, this time at Bátaapáti. Wearing rubber boots, high-visibility vests, and helmets provided by the facility, we ventured into the tunnels of the low- and medium-level waste repository. Though feeling well equipped in our protective gear, as we descended into the shafts, we paused to acknowledge the statue of Saint Barbara, patron saint of miners, and surely some of us secretly hoped for her protection. 

Protective clothing is designed to serve as a barrier between the wearer and any radioactive contaminants, preventing particles such as dust or soil from coming into direct contact with skin or hair. Its primary purpose is to avoid radioactive contamination, although some types of protective clothing also help reduce radiation exposure. In controlled areas—zones where individuals might receive an effective, dangerous dose of radiation—dosimetricians wear full-body suits and use Geiger counter to monitor radiation levels. Strict protocols are followed to minimize significant exposure. The annual limit for effective radiation exposure for occupationally exposed individuals is twenty millisieverts, a threshold carefully enforced to protect workers in these environments.