At airports around the world, the question “What’s inside that bag?” is answered thousands of times a day, to detect explosives, poison, chemical compounds,… in both carry on and checked in luggage.
Checking all those bags, trolleys and suitcases by hand would be too much work and might also be dangerous, so thank god for CT-scanners.
Using x-rays, it’s possible to see the content of the bags without opening them and thanks to some smart technology, it’s even possible to distinguish a difference between organic, inorganic or metal objects because of a difference in density and amount of radiation the objects absorb.
Most bombs are made from organic material, but most organic objects are low-energy, so for this reason, the rays from the scanner are passed through 2 detectors: first through a full detector, then through a high-pass filter to filter out the low energy signatures and then through the second filter. The software automatically compares the data from both detectors and the differences between them are the low energy objects, most often the organic material.
![airport-security-xray2[1]](https://mastersthesis2k15.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/airport-security-xray21.jpg)
I’m sure most of us have heard stories about camera’s not working after passing through a scanner at the airport, laptops that stop functioning,…
These are however myths if those objects are in the carry on luggage. The scanners used at the security checkpoints are what they call “film-safe”. The amount of radiation is so low there will be no effect what so ever on film or electronic devices.
If however you put your camera in you checked bag, there is the possibility of damage. The checked luggage is often processed in larger batches, with more powerful equipment, higher levels of radiation and so more effect on the film. Laptops and other electronic devices should however be safe with the latest technology.
This is once again a great way NDT makes our lives easier. It is however interesting to note that this isn’t the best bomb detection method available. Most airports still have a dedicated staff of trained dogs to sniff out suspicious items, often with a higher success ratio than modern technology research has found.
No matter how good technology is, nature still does it better.
For more information about how the scanners at airports work and what other methods are used check out this link
What's Really Inside? 
I’m really glad that technology used in modern day airports works like a charm. Double checking with police dogs is off course a good solution to find the things we still can’t detect.
However, as this technology is used a lot, a lot of documentation can be found on it. People with malicious intents will try to find ways to prevent detection. While the technology can still grow, these ways will also improve as well.
This probably leads to the fact that on a lot of American airports they still manually check every muslim for bombs.
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This is indeed a great technology. Nowadays there are a lot of terrorist groups, or in general people with bad intentions. From my personal experience it can sometimes get annoying when you have to pass multiple security checks before you can get on an airplane or a train, it consumes a lot of time. But I’m still glad that they do all these checks because security is very important.
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I’m also a fan of the double checks. I think the checks are necessary for our safety and can’t be neglected. However if they use a more powerful scanner I think it’s only fair to notice the passengers that they shouldn’t put their camera in their luggage. I think it’s fair to say that we can’t live without this technology. However a human or animal checkup can be useful.
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I agree with all the replies above, but I have one thing to add: I did not know it could be harmful for your camera or laptop if they are in your suitcase. Shouldn’t airplane companies make people more aware of this? I guess most of the people take these things with them on the plane but still …
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