An ad hoc committee under the aegis of the Space Studies Board of the NRC sponsored a cross-disciplinary workshop on the radiation environments in the
inner solar system and their effects on astronauts and operational systems in
space. The workshop consisted of overview talks and panel discussions in the
following areas:
*Characterization of the heliospheric radiation environment as understood to
date, including required data sources
* Physical mechanisms of energetic particle acceleration and transport in the
heliosphere as understood to date
* Radiation health hazards to astronauts
* Radiation effects on materials and spacecraft systems
* Mitigation techniques and strategies, including forecasting and operational
schemes
The workshop brought together experts from a variety of disciplines to
identify open questions that will determine the direction of future research on
the above topics. Participants considered in particular the extent that
questions in the areas above can be answered by the focused application of
current understanding in the relevant physical, biological, and technological
fields, and the extent to which basic research will be required to provide the
requisite answers. The workshop concentrated not only on application of
current knowledge, but on the basic research into fundamental physical
processes that will be necessary for mitigation of the hazards posed by the
radiation environment in which manned expeditions to the Moon and Mars will
take place. Given the interdisciplinary nature of the workshop, care was taken to ensure that the highly specialized topics are presented on a level
that would be understandable and useful to the members of the various research
communities represented at the workshop.
The workshop was funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
 Click here to read the report.
Committee Members: Dr. Daniel N. Baker - (Chair)
University of Colorado at Boulder | Dr. Walter Schimmerling
National Aeronautics and Space Administration [Retired] | Dr. Leslie A. Braby
Texas A&M University-College Station | Dr. Howard J. Singer
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | Dr. Stanley Curtis
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center | Dr. Leonard Strachan, Jr.
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory | Dr. Jack R. Jokipii
University of Arizona | Dr. Lawrence W. Townsend
University of Tennessee, Knoxville | Dr. William S. Lewis
Southwest Research Institute | Dr. Ronald E. Turner
ANSER (Analytic Services Inc.) | Dr. Jack Miller
E. O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory | Dr. Thomas H. Zurbuchen
University of Michigan
|
Staff:
Dwayne Day, Study Director
Space Studies Board | |
