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Radiation Measured for Chinese Satellite SJ‐10 Space Mission
Author(s) -
Zhou Dazhuang,
Sun Yeqing,
Zhang Binquan,
Zhang Shenyi,
Sun Yueqiang,
Liang Jinbao,
Zhu Guangwu,
Jing Tao,
Yuan Bin,
Zhang Huanxin,
Zhang Meng,
Wang Wei,
Zhao Lei
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: space physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2169-9402
pISSN - 2169-9380
DOI - 10.1002/2017ja024697
Subject(s) - physics , cosmic ray , radiation , linear energy transfer , south atlantic anomaly , particle radiation , space environment , van allen radiation belt , health threat from cosmic rays , satellite , particle detector , payload (computing) , computational physics , optics , charged particle , ion , nuclear physics , astronomy , magnetosphere , computer science , computer network , plasma , coronal mass ejection , quantum mechanics , network packet , solar wind
Abstracts Space biological effects are mainly a result of space radiation particles with high linear energy transfer (LET); therefore, accurate measurement of high LET space radiation is vital. The radiation in low Earth orbits is composed mainly of high‐energy galactic cosmic rays (GCRs), solar energetic particles, particles of radiation belts, the South Atlantic Anomaly, and the albedo neutrons and protons scattered from the Earth's atmosphere. CR‐39 plastic nuclear track detectors sensitive to high LET are the best passive detectors to measure space radiation. The LET method that employs CR‐39 can measure all the radiation LET spectra and quantities. CR‐39 detectors can also record the incident directions and coordinates of GCR heavy ions that pass through both CR‐39 and biosamples, and the impact parameter, the distance between the particle's incident point and the seed's spore, can then be determined. The radiation characteristics and impact parameter of GCR heavy ions are especially beneficial for in‐depth research regarding space radiation biological effects. The payload returnable satellite SJ‐10 provided an excellent opportunity to investigate space radiation biological effects with CR‐39 detectors. The space bio‐effects experiment was successfully conducted on board the SJ‐10 satellite. This paper introduces space radiation in low Earth orbits and the LET method in radiation‐related research and presents the results of nuclear tracks and biosamples hitting distributions of GCR heavy ions, the radiation LET spectra, and the quantities measured for the SJ‐10 space mission. The SJ‐10 bio‐experiment indicated that radiation may produce significant bio‐effects.