Detection of primary and secondary cosmic ray particles aboard the ISS using SSNTD stacks

Abstract

To study the radiation environment inside the International Space Station, solid state nuclear track detector stacks were used. Within the BRADOS experiments, Phase 1, seven stacks were exposed at different locations of the Russian segment 'Zvezda' for 248 days in 2001. It was supposed that the radiation field inside the ISS was composed from primary cosmic ray particles penetrating the wall of the ISS and secondaries, mainly neutrons induced by primaries in the wall and other structural materials surrounding the detectors. Based on the calibration made by utilising the high energy neutron reference field CERF at CERN (Geneva, Switzerland), the tracks induced by neutrons were separated from those induced by primary particles. Thus, the stacks, on one hand, provided the secondary neutron ambient dose equivalent. On the other hand, from the analysis of the rest of the tracks, the linear energy transfer spectra were computed and the flux and the dose of the primary particles were determined as shown in this paper.

Radiation dosimetry onboard the International Space Station ISS

“…One of these is the Russian ''BRADOS'' experiment, where passive detectors from different groups are positioned in standardized exposure containers, situated in various positions inside the Russian part of the ISS [42][43][44][45]. As an example Table 6 shows Table 4 Dose equivalent (mSv/d) and absorbed dose (mGy/d) rate as well as the mean quality factor measured for various locations inside the ISS by SRAG during expedition 12 applying a combination of TLDs and CR-39 detectors (data from [25] Further results of the DosMap experiment -measured by the active DOSTEL -Silicon Telescope are provided in Fig.…”

“…Up to now, only three space experiments dealt with the determination of the depth dose profile inside tissue-equivalent phantoms. They contained measurements inside a phantom head [46], and an Alderson phantom upper torso [47,48], applying a combination of various active and passive dosemeter systems, Table 6 Comparison of TLD 700 measured absorbed dose rates at various locations in the US Lab Destiny during the DOSMAP [34] experiment and in the Russian Service Module Zvezda during the BRADOS 1 [42][43][44][45] [49]. In addition Russian scientists simplified the phantom to a spherical water filled phantom, which was first exposed on Space Station Mir [50] and its successor -a tissue equivalent spherical phantom -is currently measuring the radiation load on the ISS [51].…”

Difference in Biological Effectiveness Due to The Endpoints and Radiation Quality

“…During spaceflight, astronauts will be exposed to highly penetrating radiation consisting primarily of high energy protons and heavy ions, and secondary radiations created by the interaction of the ions with shielding material such as the walls of the space craft and so on (Cucinotta et al, 2000;Doke et al, 2001;Pálfalvi et al, 2006). The spectra of the ion species and its linear energy transfer (LET) in the space are widely spread.…”

The Influence of Mutation Induction in Normal Human Fibroblasts Irradiated with X Rays and Iron Ions

“…During space flight involving a long period of stay in the international space station (ISS), astronauts are exposed to cosmic rays, which includes high energy charged particles (Doke et al, 1995;Pálfalvi et al, 2006). Such radiations are capable of inducing chromosome aberrations and gene mutations after long-term space flights (Khaidakov et al, 1997;Yang et al, 1997;Cutinotta et al, 2008).…”