London, Oct 27 : Monitoring dust levels in darkened tunnels often poses a big challenge, but now all one needs to do is take a picture with a flash camera to measure the dust, say scientists.

Dust has been found to cause throat and lung irritation for tunnel and mine workers. It can even lead to long-term serious health problems.

Masato Shinji at Yamaguchi University in Japan has claimed that one can easily measure the dust via a camera, simply by taking a flash photograph, reports New Scientist magazine.

The image produced by the camera shows the dust specks as white dots, which are easy to count with the help of software.

The picture can give a good idea of the amount of dust within the range of the flashgun, and in turn its density in the air.

Shinji said that the result should be a better way to make sure that tunnels and mines are safe for workers. (ANI)