Towards sustainable human space exploration—priorities for radiation research to quantify and mitigate radiation risks

Abstract

Human spaceflight is entering a new era of sustainable human space exploration. By 2030 humans will regularly fly to the Moon’s orbit, return to the Moon’s surface and preparations for crewed Mars missions will intensify. In planning these undertakings, several challenges will need to be addressed in order to ensure the safety of astronauts during their space travels. One of the important challenges to overcome, that could be a major showstopper of the space endeavor, is the exposure to the space radiation environment. There is an urgent need for quantifying, managing and limiting the detrimental health risks and electronics damage induced by space radiation exposure. Such risks raise key priority topics for space research programs. Risk limitation involves obtaining a better understanding of space weather phenomena and the complex radiation environment in spaceflight, as well as developing and applying accurate dosimetric instruments, understanding related short- and long-term health risks, and strategies for effective countermeasures to minimize both exposure to space radiation and the remaining effects post exposure. The ESA/SciSpacE Space Radiation White Paper identifies those topics and underlines priorities for future research and development, to enable safe human and robotic exploration of space beyond Low Earth Orbit.

Space agency-specific standards for crew dose and risk assessment of ionising radiation exposures for the International Space Station

“…To date, also the discussions about the influence of age and gender as those about the importance of genetic predisposition on radiation effects are by no means concluded [24] . ESA roadmap for space radiation research includes spaceflight and ground-based experiments, as well as risk modelling studies [25] , [26] . Ground-based studies in space radiation protection in Europe are based at the GSI synchrotron in Darmstadt (Germany), able to accelerated heavy ions up to 1 GeV/n [27] .…”

Advanced Technologies in Radiation Research

“…However, as astronauts venture further into space, the dose rate will increase to 110-300 mSv/year on the Moon and 130-260 mSv/year on Mars. Since solid tumor induction may occur at effective doses as low as 200 mSv (20) and radiation health effects for astronauts include but are not limited to accelerated aging of tissues, an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and neurodegeneration (21,22), radiation countermeasures are needed to protect astronauts.…”

Improving Solar Energetic Particle Event Prediction through Multivariate Time Series Data Augmentation

“…Therefore, predicting SEP events in advance provides the decision-makers and astronauts with adequate time to take action and reduce the risks. Space agencies need to accurately predict these rare events to reduce the risks and ensure the safety of their missions (Fogtman et al 2023).…”