Division of accelerators, cryogenics and magnetism

For the purpose of human missions to Mars, the impact of ionizing radiation on the human body will have to be limited to minimize the risk of fatal cancer. The main sources of radioactive exposure in space are charged particles emitted by the sun, and galactic cosmic rays. While shielding strategies already exist for solar particles, designing effective shielding against cosmic radiation is more difficult. The solution adopted to protect the human habitat of a space vessel consists in producing a static magnetic field, using large toroidal superconducting magnets, to deflect the paths of charged particles. This magnetic shielding system calls for critical technologies (minimizing magnet weight and ensuring dependable operation and cooling) that must be developed and validated. The European SR2S project (Space Radiation Superconducting Shield; www.sr2s.eu) was set up to drive progress in these areas. Several configurations have been studied over a period of three years, including the large ATLAS detector on CERN’s LHC (see 3D view above), which produces the required shielding field, while creating an almost zero field in the cabin located at the center.