NASA to Test Israeli-Made Anti-Radiation Vest in Deep Space

Manufactured by Israel-based StemRad the vest protects vital body organs and tissues that are especially sensitive to radiation

Tofi Stoler 16:5817.04.18

The Israel Space Agency (ISA) announced on Tuesday that it is entering an agreement with NASA to test a radiation suit manufactured by Israeli company StemRad Ltd. during a deep space mission. The agreement is scheduled to be signed at the 34th Space Symposium in Colorado later that day.

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Dubbed AstroRad, the vest-like suit, first adapted for female astronauts, protects vital body organs and tissues which are especially sensitive to radiation damage such as lungs, bone marrow, the large intestine, the chest and the ovaries, the agency said in a statement. According to the statement, the company hopes the results of the experiment will lead NASA to use the suit in future manned missions to space.

StemRad's anti-radiation vest. Photo: PR

In 2015, StemRad partnered with American aerospace manufacturer Lockheed Martin, NASA's prime contractor for its deep space Orion capsule.

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Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Tel Aviv with additional offices in Tampa, Florida, StemRad develops and manufactures wearable anti-radiation equipment for military, scientific and medical applications. The company’s flagship product is the 360 Gamma, which protects a user's pelvic bone marrow. In December, StemRad announced a $6 million investment round.

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7.One word for you: bremsstrahlungSo-called "cosmic rays" are distinct from high-energy photons (X-rays, gamma rays) because they are ionized atomic nuclei traveling at speeds close to the speed of light and therefore, summing mass energy and kinetic energy, are more than a trillion times more energetic than the photons.

No shielding apart from a magnetic field will protect one from such particles. On the contrary: metal (e.g. lead) shielding causes the charged particles to decelerate. As everyone knows, a decelerating charged particle emits electromagnetic radiation -- in this case X-rays in the forward direction. That's bremsstrahlung.

Metallic spaceships are like little X-ray ovens for astronauts inside. Cue Gary Owens' Farside cartoon of two polar bears munching on an igloo: crunchy on the outside, chewey on the inside!

In other words: the shielding is the problem...
John Doe,(12.05.18)
6.Head Protection?What about the most important organ - the brain? It would be like climbing Mount Everest with all the right clothes except wearing nothing on your head. If only their bodies are protected then their brains will not be and what is the effect of that going to be? I bet they have not tested that on any volunteers on earth - anybody fancy a blast of radiation on their brain? They are hoping everything will be alright based presumably on some dodgy experiments on rats and radiotherapy studies on cancer victims. Well we all know what dubious conclusions are extrapolated from 'scientific' studies.
StephenPhillips,(11.05.18)
5.ApolloApollo flights were about a week and a half long; the walks, only hours. They dodged all but the thin fringe of the Van Allen Belt. Mars is more than 150 times farther away... so more precautions will be needed. No Apollo astronaut took even 1/500th of a lethal dose... Mars will be much tougher.
Robert,(07.05.18)
4.suitWhat'd they use for the Moon walks
Jokerest,(06.05.18)