Welcome to the Human Spaceflight - Cumulative crew radiation exposure service

A number of models and in-orbit sensor datasets are provided with the help of products and tools such as:

• the RadSpace products providing information on the radiation environment and accumulated dose in human phantoms at ISS resulting from dedicated measurement campaigns;
• the Next Generation Radiation Monitor (NGRM) on EDRS-C provides measurements of energetic electrons and proton fluxes at GEO orbit;
• measurements and derived data products from the Energetic Particle Telescope (EPT) on PROBA-V;
• measurements from the Standard Radiation Environment Monitors (SREM) on Proba-1, Integral, Rosetta, Herschel and Planck;
• the Space Environment Information System (SPENVIS) coupling several empirical and engineering models of the space environment and its effects on spacecraft or components based on a mission plan;
• the Solar Energetic Particle Environment Modelling (SEPEM) application allowing solar energetic particle statistical analyses on an extended set of cross-calibrated data;
• the Solar Influences Data analysis Center (SIDC) Solarmap allows the user to display solar features (such as sunspots, coronal holes, filaments, etc.) on the solar disc, and navigate back and forth in time;
• the Space Weather Data Browsing and Analysis (SWE Data) is a web application that provides access to space weather environment data.

This service page is curated by the ESC Space Radiation. For further information, please contact SSCC Helpdesk.

Particle radiation is considered the main hazard for human spaceflight, specifically when considering a potential return trip to the Moon or interplanetary travel in general. However, even at Low Earth Orbit (LEO) like the International Space Station, particle radiation poses a risk. Information is thus needed to evaluate the possible health effects of space particle radiation on humans on short-and long-term space missions. This includes space environment data (e.g. particle radiation, solar X-ray and UV observations) and dose measurements.

The RadSpace products provide information on the radiation environment at the International Space Station (ISS) which can be harmful to the health of the ISS crewmembers. The data from the DOSIS and DOSIS 3D projects map the radiation environment inside the Columbus Laboratory based on passive and active radiation detectors. The results from the three MATROSHKA campaigns provide the depth dose distribution inside an anthropomorphic phantom using passive dosimeters.

Energetic particle flux measurements and derived products from the Next Generation Radiation Monitor (NGRM) on board EDRS-C at geosynchronous equatorial orbit (GEO) and the Energetic Particle Telescope (EPT) on board PROBA-V at LEO can be accessed from the Products section. Event lists of Solar Energetic Particle (SEP) events can be accessed through the Solar Energetic Particle Environment Modelling (SEPEM) application and the high energy SEP event catalogues that are part of the UTU-SEP product suite. A number of other particle radiation measurements are available through the Space Environment Data System (SEDAT) as well. Note that the particle fluxes need to be properly propagated through the Earth's magnetosphere if the user is interested in knowing the flux at a different altitude other than where the measurements were taken.

Measurements and detection of solar flares and coronal mass ejections are provided by the Solar Influences Data Analysis Center (SIDC) and the Kanzelhöhe Observatory (KSO). Archives of geomagnetic indices are available from the Tromsø Geophysical Observatory (TGO), the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) and SEDAT.

A large set of measurements can also be accessed through the Space Weather Data Browsing and Analysis (SWE Data) web interface.

In order to study the specific radiation environment near and inside a spacecraft, a tool such as the Space Environment Information System (SPENVIS) could be used. This tool allows the execution of a set of space environment models based on a mission scenario (mission duration, typical spacecraft trajectories and spacecraft attitude) and to evaluate impacts and risks by propagating the results into engineering models. The tool includes graphical visualisation and an extended help with background information and references to the European standards. For a more comprehensive analysis of the space environment effects, the SPENVIS output could be exported to more specific applications, such as GRAS (Geant4 Radiation Analysis for Space) or SPIS (Spacecraft Plasma Interaction Software), that are taking into account the detailed geometry of the spacecraft.

Auxiliary Information

This section provides links to web pages or resources that are not part of the ESA Space Weather Service Network or esa.int domain.  These sites are not under ESA control, and therefore ESA is not responsible for any of the information or links that you may find there. 

Reference documents:

• Directive 2013/59/Euratom Basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation.
• ECSS-E-ST-10-04C Space environment (15 June 2020)
• ECSS-E-ST-10-12C Method for the calculation of radiation received and its effects, and a policy for design margins (issued on 15 November 2008)
• ECSS-E-HB-10-12A Calculation of radiation and its effects and margin policy handbook (issued on 17 December 2010)

For further information, please contact SSCC Helpdesk.