Radiation shielding of spacecraft's in manned interplanetary flights

Authors
Citation
P. Spillantini, Radiation shielding of spacecraft's in manned interplanetary flights, NUCL PH B-P, 85, 2000, pp. 3-11
Language
INGLESE
art.tipo
Article
Categorie Soggetti
Physics
Journal title
NUCLEAR PHYSICS B-PROCEEDINGS SUPPLEMENTS
ISSN journal
0920-5632 → ACNP
Volume
85
Year of publication
2000
Pages
3 - 11
Database
ISI
SICI code
0920-5632(200005)85:<3:RSOSIM>2.0.ZU;2-B
Abstract
The high energy protons of the Solar Cosmic Rays (SCR) are by far the most dangerous for the health of the astronauts in manned flights outside the pr otection of the Earth magnetic field. However, since the astronauts are in any case protected by the walls of the spaceship, only protons with kinetic energy exceeding 20 MeV must be taken into consideration. They have a smal l dispersion around the direction of the solar wind, what makes easier the protection against their action because absorber's of adequate thickness ca n be located in the side of their arrival direction. The mass of the requir ed absorber rapidly increases with the energy of the proton, and is already 1,400 kg/m(2) for stopping protons of 500 MeV. It is therefore necessary t o have recourse to the use of magnetic superconducting lenses for defocussi ng the beam of the arriving protons and protect the astronauts behind them. It is presented and discussed a scheme of toroidal lens protecting a volum e of 10 m(2) cross section at all energies of interest and weighing a few h undred kg. It is presented the program for developing a prototype of such a lens to be validated on board of the International Space Station and for s ending an interplanetary probe for mapping the characteristics of the high energy SCR from Earth to Mars and correlating them with the solar activity phenomena.