Simulation of radiation field inside interplanetary spacecraft

Abstract

A simulation of the radiation field inside a habitable module (a diameter of 6 m and length of 12 m) of a spacecraft generated by isotropic Galactic Cosmic Radiation (GCR) in deep interplanetary space is carried out for minimum and maximum solar activity using the FLUKA code. Protons, alpha-particles, deuterons, $$^{\mathrm {3}}$$ He, and nuclei with $${Z} > 2$$ are considered as primary GCR irradiating the spacecraft isotropically. The following particles are included in FLUKA radiation transport through the module shell ( $$15\hbox { g/cm}^{\mathrm {2}}$$ of Al): protons, neutrons, $$\gamma $$ -rays, electrons, $$\pi ^{\mathrm {\pm }}$$ -mesons, $$\mu ^{\mathrm {\pm }}$$ -mesons d, t, and nuclei from He to Ni. The inner particle spectra are needed to assess the astronaut’s radiation risk in a long-term interplanetary mission.