Radiation Biology Research and Applications

Profiles & Overviews | Flight Hardware | Links

Key Research Questions

Experiment/Mission Information


Experiment Information from the NASA Life Sciences Data Archive
Description: This link to the NASA Life Sciences Data Archive provides a list of relevant descriptions of flight experiments investigating Radiation Biology.

Mission Information from the NASA Life Sciences Data Archive
Description: This link to the NASA Life Sciences Data Archive provides a list of relevant descriptions of space flight missions that carried experiments investigating Radiation Biology.

Profiles & Overviews

Microbe Survives Lethal Doses of Radiation
Description: DNA damage caused by radiation would be one of the greatest threats to astronauts on a mission to Mars. This article describes the research scientists are conducting with Halobacterium, a microbe found in the Dead Sea, to understand how it repairs its damaged DNA. (Posted on 10/04)

Radiation Threatens Blood-Making Cells
Description: The radiation astronauts encounter in deep space could put vital blood-making cells in jeopardy. This article profiles research conducted by the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory to assess any deleterious effects and develop countermeasures. (Posted on 10/04)

Space Radiation, Part 1: Understanding the Problem
Description: This article gives an overview of space radiation, its risks to astronauts, and ground-based simulations of space radiation. (Posted on 11/03)

Space Radiation, Part 2: Learning from Experiments in Space
Description: This article discusses how radiation is studied in space, as well as methods used to protect astronauts from its harmful effects. (Posted on 11/03)

Flight Hardware

Biorack US1 Experiment Hardware
Biorack US1 Image

Description: The Biorack US1 Experiment Hardware, developed to study the effects of microgravity and radiation on a variety of organisms, flew on the International Microgravity Laboratory 1 payload on the STS-42 mission . (Excerpt from Life into Space 1991-1998) (Posted on 01/01)

Biorack US2 Experiment Hardware
Biorack US2 Image

Description: The Biorack US2 Experiment Hardware, flown on the International Microgravity Laboratory 1 payload on the STS-42 mission, was designed to study the effects of microgravity and radiation on a cellular and genetic structures. (Excerpt from Life into Space 1991-1998) (Posted on 01/01)

Drosophila Experiment Package
Drosophila Experiment Package image

Description: The Drosophila Experiment Package, developed to support radiation and microgravity studies on fruit flies, was flown on U.S. Biosatellite missions. (Excerpt from Life into Space 1965-1990) (Posted on 12/00)

Habrobracon Experiment Package

Description: The Habrobracon Experiment Package, flown on U.S. Biosatellite missions, was used in radiation experiments studying wasps. (Excerpt from Life into Space 1965-1990) (Posted on 12/00)

Neurospora Experiment Package
Neurospora hardware image

Description: The Neurospora Experiment Package, flown on U.S. Biosatellite missions, exposed fungus spores to various radiation levels. (Excerpt from Life into Space 1965-1990) (Posted on 12/00)

Radiation Detectors
radiation detectors image

Description: Radiation Detectors were flown on a number of Soviet/Russian Cosmos Biosatellite missions. (Excerpt from Life into Space 1965-1990) (Posted on 12/00)

Radiation Source
radiation Source Image

Description: The Radiation Source and Holder were used on the U.S. Biosatellite missions to expose organisms to controlled amounts of radiation. (Excerpt from Life into Space 1965-1990) (Posted on 12/00)

Tribolium Experiment Package
Tribolium Experiment Package Image

Description: The Tribolium Experiment Package, flown on U.S. Biosatellite missions, held flour beetles for radiation experiments. (Excerpt from Life into Space 1965-1990) (Posted on 12/00)

Links

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Computerized Video Time Lapse Analysis
This site for a lab at the University of California, San Francisco includes images and video of the effects of radiation on cells. Abstracts of publications are also provided.

Italian Space Radiation Health Projects
While offering a brief introduction to space radiation and links to space radiation projects around the world, the site highlights information about space radiation projects throughout Italy.

Martian Radiation Environment Experiment (MARIE)
Launched on the 2001 Mars Odyssey Orbiter, MARIE measures space radiation from galactic cosmic rays and solar energetic particles to understand and characterize the radiation environment between Earth and Mars, as well as near the Martian surface.

NASA/Brookhaven National Laboratory Space Radiation Biology Program
The NASA Space Radiation Biology program examines the issues surrounding the protection of humans in space against the harmful effects of high-energy heavy ions.

NASA Radiation Research Program
This Web page profiles the Radiation Research Program within NASA's Office of Biological & Physical Research and includes Program contacts and links to other radiation research-related sites.

NASA Space Radiation Laboratory
The NASA/Department of Energy lab conducts radiation studies in support of the space program using biological models ranging from a simple to complex.

NASA Specialized Centers of Research and Training
This is the home page of the Laurence Berkeley National Laboratories/Colorado State University NSCORT in Radiation Health.

National Space Biomedical Research Institute
This site details the NSBRI's research projects in the field of radiation effects.

Radiation and the International Space Station
This report, authored by the National Research Council on Radiation Risk Mitigation for the Space Station, includes background sections on the radiation environment, risks, and metrics.

Space Radiation Health Project
NASA's Space Radiation Health Project utilizes ground-based research to study the impact of space radiation at the molecular and cellular level.