Astronauts to get radiation protection vests

[Still Waters]

If humans are ever to venture into space on long-term missions, we have to find a way to protect from space radiation.

The high-energy particles and electromagnetic radiation that fill up space can tear through our DNA, sometimes beyond repair, it can cause cardiovascular disease and prohibit new brain cells from being generated.

At the moment we have no developed way to protect from this lethal radiation.

Now, an Israeli company has brought us a step closer to overcoming this problem, with a radiation shield that could be used on the International Space Station (ISS) as early as next year.

http://www.wired.co.uk/article/space-radiation-shields-iss-2019

[LV-426]

I'm absolutely no expert, but don't "vests" seem a little limited?

I don't know at what stage of development this project currently is, but research into magnetic fields looks like quite an elegant solution to me; mimicking the natural protection we have on Earth?

Can A Mega-Magnetic Field Protect Astronauts From Radiation?

No doubt, someone with a better understanding can explain the current challenges and limitations

[Waspie_Dwarf]

1 hour ago, LV-426 said:

I'm absolutely no expert, but don't "vests" seem a little limited?

I don't know at what stage of development this project currently is, but research into magnetic fields looks like quite an elegant solution to me; mimicking the natural protection we have on Earth?

So do they not fly Orion until they have a protection system that may work sometime in the future or do they fly with one they know will work now?

The problem is that there is always some possible better solution on the horizon, but if we always wait until then nothing will ever get done.

Beside it's not an either/or situation. Flying with radiation vests now does not preclude the use of protective magnetic fields in the future whan (and if) that technlogy becomes available.

[LV-426]

3 hours ago, Waspie_Dwarf said:

So do they not fly Orion until they have a protection system that may work sometime in the future or do they fly with one they know will work now?

The problem is that there is always some possible better solution on the horizon, but if we always wait until then nothing will ever get done.

Beside it's not an either/or situation. Flying with radiation vests now does not preclude the use of protective magnetic fields in the future whan (and if) that technlogy becomes available.

Like I say Waspie, I'm absolutely no expert, which is why I prompted further input from others such as yourself.

Personally I'd say it comes down to individual choice, and risk versus reward. The history of human exploration suggests we'll accept the risks. Some might even accept, for example, higher risk of cancer in later life as an acceptable price to pay for being a pioneer in human history.

I just found the article I posted interesting, as it was dated 2014 and claimed "their technology will “solve the issue of radiation protection in three years”." Obviously their claims were exaggerated, but I wonder how far off this technology is from becoming a reality? Another couple of years, for example, would seem a reasonable delay for significantly increased protection.

[Waspie_Dwarf]

1 hour ago, LV-426 said:

Another couple of years, for example, would seem a reasonable delay for significantly increased protection.

The 2014 article you quoted should be enough to tell you why this is a monumentally bad idea.

You wait two years because you think it might just be ready. Then another two years because there were problems. And then another two because there were more problems, and so on.

When I was at school cheap energy from nuclear fusion was just 30 years away. 35 years later and cheap energy from nuclear fusion is 40-50 years away. Imagine if everyone had sat around doing nothing because nuclear fusion was on the way.

Maybe the magnetic shield technology will work. Maybe it will be scalabe and be able to be fitted on a spacecraft like Orion. Maybe it will have a power usage that Orion will be able to generate. Maybe all this will happen by the time of the first crewed Orion launch. Maybe not.

You can not rely on maybes, you can not continually delay projects simply because there may be a better solution tomorrow. There comes a time when you have to go with what you have got.