Space radiation poses multiple health risks to astronauts including cancer, cardiovascular disease, and damage to the central nervous system. Radiation from galactic cosmic rays (GCR) is the main source of these risks for missions beyond low Earth orbit to the moon and beyond. A galactic cosmic ray simulator (GCRsim) was developed at the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory to better understand and mitigate these risks by simulating the complex mixed field of the GCR environment at a ground-based facility. The GCRsim delivers a radiation field to cell and animal models in a laboratory setting that is comparable to the shielded radiation environment within internal organs of astronauts in deep space missions. Previous verification studies using Monte Carlo simulations with mouse (Digimouse) and rat (Digirat) digital phantoms showed that the GCRsim yields acceptable dose homogeneity within the internal organs of these animals. Spectral characteristics of the intended space radiation environment are also accurately reproduced at radiosensitive sites in both phantoms. In this work, similar Monte Carlo simulations were performed in a minipig model (Digipig) to show the applicability and limitations of the current GCRsim for larger animal model systems. The results showed dose homogeneity in internal organs of the three animal models with GCRsim irradiation. While slightly lower average doses were seen in the minipig compared to the external beam dose, the individual voxel doses in slices of the phantoms were found to be within 6%–8% of the average voxel dose, establishing that the GCRsim can still provide a relatively homogeneous irradiation within larger animals. Furthermore, simulated dose and fluence spectral results across the relevant linear energy transfer (LET) range agreed well with the reference field in the most relevant regions of the spectra, further verifying that the GCRsim beam represents the reference field in larger animals.


    Zugriff

    Zugriff über TIB

    Verfügbarkeit in meiner Bibliothek prüfen


    Exportieren, teilen und zitieren



    Titel :

    Applicability of the Nasa Galactic Cosmic Ray Simulator for Mice, Rats, and Minipigs


    Beteiligte:
    Shirin Rahmanian (Autor:in) / Tony C. Slaba (Autor:in)

    Erschienen in:

    Erscheinungsdatum :

    2023-04-07




    Medientyp :

    Sonstige


    Format :

    Keine Angabe


    Sprache :

    Englisch






    Galactic cosmic rays

    Hayakawa, S. | Elsevier | 1984


    NASA TileWorld Simulator Program

    Philips, Andrew / Bresina, John / Drummond, Mark | NTRS | 1993


    NASA/FAA helicopter simulator workshop

    Larsen, William E. / Randle, Robert J., Jr. / Bray, Richard S. et al. | NTRS | 1992