[ExI] Radiation damage could stop manned trips to Mars

[BillK]

"Space brain" could make manned trips to Mars rather forgettable
11 Oct 2016

<http://newatlas.com/cosmic-rays-space-brain-dementia/45840/>

Quotes:
For astronauts on the ISS, radiation mainly curtails how long and how
many visits crews can make in a lifetime. But outside of the
protection of Earth's magnetic field, which means any deep space
mission, it's another matter. On long missions, including to Mars,
galactic cosmic rays become a major hazard. These immensely high
energy charged particles that originate outside the Solar System can
shoot through spacecraft hulls and passengers as if they aren't even
there. However, when the heavier of these particles, such as the
nuclei of oxygen and carbon atoms, strike, they can directly or
indirectly cause major damage to living tissue.

Limoli says that the symptoms produced would be like dementia and
would manifest themselves within months of leaving Earth. The
astronauts would have problems with anxiety, impaired memory, reduced
ability to multitask, and poor decision making. Worse, the condition
would continue indefinitely.

Currently, solutions are being sought for the cosmic ray problems, but
the amount of shielding needed to protect Mars crews would make any
mission too expensive to mount, and the highly energetic particles
would still penetrate the hull or cause radiation cascades like a
shell turning armor plate into shrapnel. With this in mind, the UCI
team is looking at a medical solution using compounds that could
scavenge free radicals and protect neurotransmission.
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Looks like robots will be our space explorers........


BillK