Quote:
Originally Posted by Charles
As far as a trip to Mars is concerned it is likely that a medical or psychiatric emergency would destroy the mission once it got underway.
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I believe it is not a question of IF but a question of WHEN as far as it goes to being in space.
From a NASA article:
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NASA's new plans include returning to the moon -- not just with robots, but with people too. In the decades ahead we can expect to see habitats, greenhouses and power stations up there. Astronauts will be out among the moondust and craters, exploring, prospecting and building.
Jan. 20, 2005, though, there were no humans walking around on the moon. And it's a good thing.
On that day, a giant sunspot named "NOAA 720" exploded. The blast sparked an X-class solar flare, the most powerful kind, and hurled a billion-ton cloud of electrified gas (a coronal mass ejection, or CME) into space. Solar protons accelerated to nearly light speed by the explosion reached the Earth-moon system minutes after the flare; it was the beginning of a days-long "proton storm."
Proton storms cause all kinds of problems. They interfere with ham radio communications. They zap satellites, causing short circuits and computer reboots. Worst of all, they can penetrate the skin of space suits and make astronauts feel sick.
January 2005 was a stormy month in space. With little warning, a giant spot materialized on the sun and started exploding. From Jan. 15 through Jan. 19, sunspot 720 produced four powerful solar flares. When it exploded a fifth time on Jan. 20, onlookers were not surprised.
The sun-lit side of the moon is totally exposed to solar flares. It has no atmosphere or magnetic field to deflect radiation. Protons rushing at the moon simply hit the ground or whoever might be walking around outside.
An astronaut on the moon, caught outdoors on Jan. 20, would have had almost no time to dash for shelter, and would have become sick. At first, he'd feel fine, but a few days later, symptoms of radiation sickness would appear: vomiting, fatigue, low blood counts. These symptoms might persist for days.