5 Reasons Going To Mars is a TERRIBLE Idea

@metal-brain said
https://www.thenakedscientists.com/articles/questions/how-does-lead-absorb-radiation-x-rays-and-gamma-rays

What has that got to do with anything I just said in that post of mine?

@humy said
What has that got to do with anything I just said in that post of mine?

It isn't a problem if you have enough lead. It is just a matter of finding a source in our solar system. The mining would have to be done by robots first though. Once a space craft could be fitted with enough lead plating it could be surrounded with an artificial magnetic field with something to absorb the charged particles before they reach the magnetic poles. Isn't that what happens in the earth's atmosphere before the northern lights reach the north magnetic pole?

@metal-brain said
Once a space craft could be fitted with enough lead plating it could be surrounded with an artificial magnetic field with something to absorb the charged particles before they reach the magnetic poles.

You mean just have the lead at the poles and not surrounding the whole part of the space capsule?
If so, for the reason I already explained in a previous post, that would give very little protection because a magnetic field wouldn't deflect X-rays and gamma-rays from distant supernovae explosions and other distant high-energy cosmic events and thus most of that dangerous radiation would still penetrate the space capsule where it isn't covered in lead.

If on the other hand you completely cover and surround it with lead then the payload would likely become ridiculous.

As I already said;

"...A magnetic field may help defect some, but (and contrary to popular belief) not all, of the solar wind particles but wouldn't deflect X-rays and gamma-rays from distant supernovae explosions and other distant high-energy cosmic events.
This is because a magnetic field can only significantly deflect charged particles and not electromagnetic radiation. ..."

@humy

There are new developments on the shielding idea.

https://phys.org/news/2020-07-mxene-material-extraordinary-electromagnetic-shielding.html

The only caveat I see in this post is they don't mention frequencies so it might only be good for gigahertz radiation, but not sure since the frequency bands of protection are not written in this article.

Here is another piece on the subject of plastics for radiation shielding:

https://www.professionalplastics.com/Radiation_Sheilding_Materials

@humy said
You mean just have the lead at the poles and not surrounding the whole part of the space capsule?
If so, for the reason I already explained in a previous post, that would give very little protection because a magnetic field wouldn't deflect X-rays and gamma-rays from distant supernovae explosions and other distant high-energy cosmic events and thus most of that dangerous radia ...[text shortened]... netic field can only significantly deflect charged particles and not electromagnetic radiation. ..."

No. That is not what I said. Go back and read what I wrote again.

@sonhouse said
@humy

There are new developments on the shielding idea.

https://phys.org/news/2020-07-mxene-material-extraordinary-electromagnetic-shielding.html

The only caveat I see in this post is they don't mention frequencies so it might only be good for gigahertz radiation, but not sure since the frequency bands of protection are not written in this article.

Here is anoth ...[text shortened]... stics for radiation shielding:

https://www.professionalplastics.com/Radiation_Sheilding_Materials

I am not sure of the prospects of designing a more effective and much less massive gamma ray shield than lead shielding but I assume the only hope of that being possible is if the material can somehow be designed not to rely on the atomic nuclei to absorb the gamma rays but rather rely on the configuration of molecular electron bonds and orbitals between the atomic nuclei to absorb the gamma rays but really don't know if there is any suitable possible configuration of molecular electron bonds and orbitals that could potentially be effective for that.

@humy
In my professional career a lot of my work was on ion implanters.
They are very good at generating X rays. The come from several sources inside the machine, mainly in the acceleration phase where you accelerate ions with up to several million EV, in most cases 200KEV. But the acceleration rings produce X rays so how they counter that is to include lead particles in the matrix of the epoxy used to hold the accel rings. The combination really reduces the X rays coming off the machine to near negligible levels. Something like that would probably work with spacecraft shielding also since there would be much less lead to have to carry on the craft.

A simple solution to the radiation problem is to re-route
power from the phasers to the shields, that normally works.

Interestin (if depressing) video though. I hadn't thought about
the dust problem and didn't have a clue how dirty the Apollo
missions got with moon-dust. Fascinating.

@wolfgang59 said
A simple solution to the radiation problem is to re-route
power from the phasers to the shields, that normally works.

Just for one moment I thought you were being SERIOUS!

@humy said
Just for one moment I thought you were being SERIOUS!

Of course not! The deflector array couldn't handle that much power.

@wolfgang59
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-8690397/Elon-Musk-says-good-chance-youll-die-Mars-virtual-summit.html

Elongated thinks you go to Mars, you die.

I am a bit more optimistic, I imagine they would get there and immediately dive into a cave and make a city there underground deep enough to be shielded from the nasty's coming from the sun and the galaxy.

If and when we do get there, that idea should be thought out before anything else.
Surviving on a hostile planet.

But first you have to survive the trip which has its own dangers.