Water and microbial monitoring technologies towards the near future space exploration.

Space exploration is demanding longer lasting human missions and water resupply from Earth will become increasingly unrealistic. In a near future, the spacecraft water monitoring systems will require technological advances to promptly identify and counteract contingent events of waterborne microbial contamination, posing health risks to astronauts with lowered immune responsiveness. The search for bio-analytical approaches, alternative to those applied on Earth by cultivation-dependent methods, is pushed by the compelling need to limit waste disposal and avoid microbial regrowth from analytical carryovers.

INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS FOR PERSONAL RADIATION SHIELDING IN SPACE.

Personal radiation shielding is likely to play an important role in the strategy for radiation protection of future manned interplanetary missions. There is potential for the successful adoption of wearable shielding devices, readily available in case of accidental exposures or used for emergency operations in low-shielded areas of the habitat, particularly in case of solar particle events (SPEs). Based on optimization of available resources, conceptual models for radiation protection spacesuits have been proposed, with elements made of different materials, and the first prototype of a water-fillable garment was designed and manufactured in the framework of the PERSEO project, funded by the Italian Space Agency, leading to the successful test of such prototype for ease of use and wearability on-board the International Space Station.

Accelerator-Based Tests of Shielding Effectiveness of Different Materials and Multilayers using High-Energy Light and Heavy Ions.

The roadmap for space exploration foresees longer journeys and further excursions outside low-Earth orbit as well as the establishment of permanent outposts on other celestial bodies, such as the Moon or Mars. The design of spacecrafts and habitats depends heavily on the mission scenario and must consider the radiation protection properties of the structural components as well as dedicated shielding. In fact, short- and long-term effects caused by exposure to cosmic radiation are now considered among the main health risks of space travel.

A water-filled garment to protect astronauts during interplanetary missions tested on board the ISS.

As manned spaceflights beyond low Earth orbit are in the agenda of Space Agencies, the concerns related to space radiation exposure of the crew are still without conclusive solutions. The risk of long-term detrimental health effects needs to be kept below acceptable limits, and emergency countermeasures must be planned to avoid the short-term consequences of exposure to high particle fluxes during hardly predictable solar events. Space habitat shielding cannot be the ultimate solution: the increasing complexity of future missions will require astronauts to protect themselves in low-shielded areas, e.

Exploring innovative radiation shielding approaches in space: A material and design study for a wearable radiation protection spacesuit.

We present a design study for a wearable radiation-shielding spacesuit, designed to protect astronauts' most radiosensitive organs. The suit could be used in an emergency, to perform necessary interventions outside a radiation shelter in the space habitat in case of a Solar Proton Event (SPE). A wearable shielding system of the kind we propose has the potential to prevent the onset of acute radiation effects in this scenario.