International Science Payload Aboard Orion EM-1: The Matroshka AstroRad Radiation Experiment (MARE)

摘要

Future long duration exploration missions require renewed efforts to adequately mitigate risks of crew health effects due to radiation exposure. Orion is NASA's next generation human exploration spacecraft. Radiation protection constitutes a design driver for Orion. During the spacecraft development process, Lockheed Martin has proactively pursued radiation protection approaches in compliance with the As Low As Reasonably Achievable (ALARA) principle. A collaborative effort with StemRad Ltd, Israel, resulted in the development of personal protective equipment for astronauts, the AstroRad. AstroRad provides customizable protection focused on stem-cell-rich organs and tissues. Orion's first test flight beyond Earth orbit (BEO) is Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1). EM-1 presents the opportunity to perform a detailed characterization of the radiation exposure of human body analogs located internal to the spacecraft in the free-space environment beyond the Earth's magnetosphere protection. MARE has been proposed by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the Israel Space Agency (ISA) as an Orion science payload, approved by NASA, and in May 2017 was manifested on the EM-1 flight.