Space Radiation Hazards and the Vision for Space Exploration Report of a Workshop (2006) / Chapter Skim
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Executive Summary
Executive Summary
Pages 1-6
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Now that the United States has adopted a civilian space policy that refocuses many NASA research and engineering missions toward the human and robotic exploration of the Moon, Mars, and eventually other solar system bodies, events such as the powerful solar storms between Apollo missions over three decades ago must be interpreted in a new context. Astronauts and spacecraft participating in the VSE will be exposed to a hazardous radiation environment, made up of galactic cosmic radiation and driven by solar energetic particle events and "space weather" changes.
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Among the points that the workshop participants agreed on were the following: · Developing timely predictions of the radiation environment is a complex task whose components vary depending on the timescale considered and on the mission characteristics; · Delivering timely predictions requires advances in basic space and solar physics, development of observational assets, improved modeling capabilities, and careful design of communications; · The space operations community -- that is, those who plan and manage human spaceflight missions -- must be informed about these advances in understanding and expanding capabilities so that operators can take advantage of advances; and · In some cases operational tools (i.e., tools for space operations) must be developed or adapted from scientific analytical tools and converted to real-time reporting tools; the transition from research to operations is a very challenging task.
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However, many of the workshop participants also expressed the concern that a primary challenge will be knowledge transfer -- that is, arranging existing data sets, models, research tools, and other assets in ways that make them useful to the space operations community. The solar and space physics community and the human spaceflight operations community do not have extensive existing ties, and this lack presents a barrier to effective collaboration.
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It is critical to decide at the outset what the radiation risk mitigation strategy will be and then to integrate this strategy into the mission concept early in the design phase. The generic elements of a radiation risk mitigation strategy include space environment situational awareness, radiation exposure forecasting, and exposure impact and risk analysis.These elements combine to generate recommendations to the mission commander, who has the responsibility for keeping the radiation exposure as low as reasonably achievable.
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Operational measures and radiation shielding are currently the main means of reducing radiation risk; improved biological markers have the potential to enable improved early diagnostics; discovery of means of biological prevention and intervention may lead to significantly more powerful methods, including better radioprotectants, to overcome the biological consequences of exposure to radiation. Continued basic research has the potential to address all of these key issues effectively.1 The challenges described here can be overcome, and NASA is making progress on many of them.
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