Science

pokerfan

(27,677 posts)

7. Tanks in the walls might work for solar flares

Thu May 30, 2013, 06:05 PM

May 2013

but cosmic rays, which tend to be mostly high-energy protons, probably wouldn't be hindered much. Still, some form of magnetic shielding might work:

The idea of shielding spacecraft from harmful cosmic radiation using artificially-generated magnetic fields was once dismissed as unrealistically expensive. But new experiments carried out in the UK show that the technology could be made compact enough, and therefore cheap enough, to protect astronauts on flights to the Moon and Mars.

http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2008/nov/06/magnetic-shield-could-protect-spacecraft

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Astronauts face radiation threat on long Mars trip [View all] Judi Lynn May 2013 OP

Been known for years zipplewrath May 2013 #1

Yup! And shielding is massive (heavy). longship May 2013 #2

How about parking the shielding at an Earth orbit station, launching the Mars rocket from Earth to ladjf May 2013 #5

I don't see any other way than multiple payloads. longship May 2013 #8

Until someone builds a fusion rocket, fission will have to do. hunter May 2013 #3

Agreed. In fact, it would be interesting to send over robots programmed to build a dimbear May 2013 #6

I wonder how strong the a magnetic Kelvin Mace May 2013 #4

Tanks in the walls might work for solar flares pokerfan May 2013 #7

Perhaps a combination of the two Kelvin Mace May 2013 #11

Solar flares have the advantage pokerfan May 2013 #12

Bring some weed Blue Owl May 2013 #9

3% increased chance of cancer? MannyGoldstein May 2013 #10