The facility is an outdoor, gamma-irradiation array consisting of 40 tanks, or mesocosms, designed to house a variety of aquatic organisms. The facility covers approximately 0.4 hectares, and any of the 40 mesocosms can be irradiated, alone or in combination with mixed contaminants. A wide range of chronic, environmentally-relevant radiation treatments can be delivered at dose rates ranging from background to over 500 mGy d-1. The facility was built specifically to test the International Atomic Energy Agency's dose-rate guideline for aquatic organisms of 10 mGy d-1. Thermoluminescent dosimeters placed within the exposure field allow accurate dose rate estimates to be made for all mesocosms. The precision with which dose rates can be estimated within the facility reduces the uncertainties often associated with dose-response relationships. A blocked, randomized design of exposures within the facility also allows for replicated, powerful statistical analyses.

Photo of a portion of Dr. Hinton's outdoor mesocosm facility that has unique capabilities for studying low dose rate effects from chronic irradiation and contaminant mixtures.

The LoDIF consists of 40 tanks divided into eight blocks with five tanks in each block.