ISSCREM: International Space Station cosmic radiation exposure model
Paper in proceeding, 2013

A semi-empirical model is derived from operational data collected aboard the International Space Station (ISS) with the U.S. tissue equivalent proportional counter (TEPC). The model provides daily and cumulative mission predictions of the operational dose equivalent that space-crew may receive from galactic cosmic radiation (GCR) and trapped radiation (TR) sources as a function of the ISS orbit. The parametric model for GCR exposure correlates the TEPC dose equivalent rate to the cutoff rigidity at ISS altitudes while the TR parametric model relates this quantity to the mean atmospheric density at the crossing of the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA). The influences of solar activity, flux asymmetry inside the SAA, detector orientation, and position aboard the ISS on the dose equivalent have been examined. The model has been successfully benchmarked against measured data for GCR and TR exposures to within ±10% and ±20%, respectively, over periods of time ranging from a single day to a full mission. In addition, preliminary estimates of the protection quantity of effective dose equivalent have been simulated using the PHITS Monte Carlo transport code. These simulations indicate that the TEPC dose equivalent is a conservative estimate of the effective dose equivalent.

Author

S. El-Jaby

Royal Military College of Canada

Atomic Energy of Canada Limited - Chalk River Lab

B. J. Lewis

Royal Military College of Canada

L. Tomi

Canadian Space Agency

Lembit Sihver

Chalmers, Applied Physics, Nuclear Engineering

T. Sato

Japan Atomic Energy Agency

Kerry Lee

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Andrew Steve Johnson

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

IEEE Aerospace Conference Proceedings

1095323X (ISSN)

6497420
978-1-4673-1811-2 (ISBN)

Subject Categories

Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology

DOI

10.1109/AERO.2013.6497420

ISBN

978-1-4673-1811-2

More information

Created

10/7/2017