In article ,
Len wrote:
Given that where secondaries are concerned inadequate shielding is worse than
no shielding at all, I'd recommend no shielding, just like NASA did for
Apollo. For solar flare events, I would just recommend careful monitoring of
solar conditions, and stopping traffic flow during flare events.

I suspect that the fact that no Apollo astronauts gat
fried was more a matter of luck than good prediction
capabilty.

Correct. Flare prediction remains a black art even today, all the more so
because flare radiation does not travel in a straight line and it is
possible for radiation from a flare on the "edge" or even the far side of
the Sun to reach Earth.

Had the 4 Aug 1972 giant flare occurred during an Apollo flight, instead
of between Apollos 16 and 17, the astronauts would have taken quite
sizable radiation doses. Had the 23 Feb 1956 giant flare occurred during
a flight, they would have taken dangerously high doses and all come down
with radiation sickness, although they would *probably* have survived.
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MOST launched 1015 EDT 30 June, separated 1046, | Henry Spencer
first ground-station pass 1651, all nominal! |