Helga and Zohar in the Ori­on cap­sule. Credit: NASA/Frank Michaux

Space radiation is a major health risk for humans and thus a decisive factor for planned long-term human space missions in the future. With the MARE experiment (Matroshka AstroRad Radiation Experiment), DLR and other partners are now making a major contribution to determining this radiation risk and developing protective measures. On the NASA Artemis I mission, the MARE experiment will for the first time fly two female phantoms to determine the radiation risk on its way to the Moon. Both phantoms will be equipped with radiation detectors and one will wear a radiation protection vest. Both are modelled on humans, so that the radiation dose can be measured in the particularly radiation-sensitive organs.

As part of the Artemis I mission, Helga and Zohar, the two phantoms, will fly in the passenger seats of Orion during its first flight to the Moon. Zohar will wear a newly developed radiation protection vest (AstroRad) from the Israeli partner StemRad. The phantoms will fly on behalf of two female astronauts. They are being equipped with radiation sensors at the DLR Institute of Aerospace Medicine in Cologne. For the first time, this will enable the astronauts to measure with a high degree of accuracy the radiation exposure they will experience during a manned flight to the Moon.

Built up of the anthropomorphic phantoms (Manufacturer: CIRS, Norfolk, USA www.cirsinc.com) © DLR

The 95-centimetre female phantoms are built up with organs and bones made of tissue equivalent plastic of different densities. DLR is currently developing, building and testing the radiation detectors, which will later be installed in Helga and Zohar. A total of 1400 sensor positions will be mounted with small passive radiation detectors consisting of crystals, and the sensors of the active detectors will also be integrated into the most radiation-sensitive organs of the body - lungs, stomach, uterus and bone marrow. While the passive detectors will measure continuously from start to return to Earth and record the total exposure, the active, battery-operated detectors will be switched on during the start and record the temporal variation of the radiation exposure. After the return, the data of the different detectors can be selected and evaluated.

The data from the phantom Helga, which will fly without a protective vest, will also be used to determine the effectiveness of the newly developed radiation protection vest (AstroRad) developed by StemRad, an industrial partner sponsored by the Israeli space agency ISA. Helga and Zohar will go through several tests before their flight to the Moon and back, which will last up to 42 days.

 

In its complexity and in its international cooperation with numerous universities and research institutions in Austria, Belgium, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Greece, Switzerland, Japan and the USA, MARE represents the largest experiment ever to determine the radiation exposure of astronauts beyond low Earth orbit. It provides basic data for estimating the radiation risk for future manned flights to the Moon.

 

 

Mondmission Artemis I Die ersten „Mond-Astronautinnen“ kehren zurück nach Köln Nach ihrer historischen Reise um den Mond mit der NASA-Mission Artemis I sind die Strahlungsmesspuppen Helga und Zohar zurück in Köln. Am 9. März 2023 präsentierte das Deutsche Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) die beiden Astronautinnen-Phantome nun erstmals den Medien am Institut für Luft- und Raumfahrtmedizin. Full article

Lunar mission Artemis I: NASA hands over fe­male 'as­tro­naut' phan­toms safe and sound af­ter flight to the Moon It was a historic journey. As part of NASA's Artemis I mission, the Orion spacecraft, powered and supplied by the European Service Module (ESM), flew to the Moon and back for the first time. On board were the two female astronaut phantoms, Helga and Zohar – part of the first experiment conducted in space to measure the radiation exposure to which the female body is exposed during such a flight. Full article

Artemis I: The female astronaut phantoms return from the Moon They returned from the Moon on a Sunday: Last night the two phantoms Helga and Zohar on board the NASA's Artemis I Orion spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. Full article

NASA-Mondmission Artemis I erfolgreich gestartet Am 16. November 2022 ist die NASA-Mission Artemis I von der Startrampe 39B am Kennedy Space Center der NASA in Florida zum Mond gestartet. Um 7:47 Uhr MEZ hob die neue SLS-Rakete mit ihrem Raumschiff Orion an Bord in Richtung unseres Erdtrabanten ab. Die Mission soll 26 Tage dauern. Full article

‘Board­ing’ for the Artemis I mis­sion – Hel­ga and Zo­har are ready for their flight to the Moon Three mannequins, a beagle and a sheep fly around the Moon in a giant rocket … extraordinary, isn’t it? This special crew is part of NASA’s Artemis I mission, scheduled to launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on 29 August 2022. Full article

Auf zum Mond: #LunaTwins auf Artemis I bereit zum Start Die Rückkehr zum Mond steht kurz bevor. An diesem Mittwoch, den 16. November 2022 um 7:04 Uhr (MEZ), öffnet sich das Startfenster für die NASA-Mission Artemis I. Full article

Tracking radiation exposure on the way to the moon We are going: Helga and Zohar are ready for takeoff! Their journey to the Moon starts soon and we're excited to see the results they'll bring back. In a video, we have explained the MARE project of the Artemis I mission. Full article

‘Green light’ for the re­turn to the Moon On 22 August 2022, NASA gave the green light for the first launch window of Artemis I. From a technical point of view, the signs are good for the first flight of the new SLS heavy-lift launch vehicle with the Orion spacecraft on board. Full article

Preparations for the Artemis I flight with female phantoms are in full swing It's getting serious: NASA has announced the expected launch date of the Artemis I mission as 29 August 2022. This is when the Orion spacecraft will set off for the moon, orbit it and return to Earth. Full article

DLR-BLOG: Project MARE – to the Moon and back with Orion In summer 2022, the time will finally have come – our Matroshka AstroRad Radiation Experiment (MARE) will fly to the Moon and back with NASA’s Artemis I mission. More

MARE Flight Hardware The pictures show the development of the so-called base structure in which HELGA is embedded during her flight - HELGA's seat, so to say, which is made of aluminum. More

MARE - Vibration test III The final vibration test was performed with the HELGA and ZOHAR flight models (FM) at the DLR Institute of Space Systems in Bremen at the end of August 2021. This test simulated the acceleration levels to which HELGA and ZOHAR will be exposed during the launch of the Artemis I mission. Both ladies passed this final test and are now ready to be installed in the Orion spacecraft for their flight to the moon and back. More

MARE Vibration test II A second vibration test was carried out with (EQM) HELGA and ZOHAR at the DLR Institute of Space Systems in Bremen. This test simulated the acceleration values to which HELGA and ZOHAR will be subjected during the launch of the Artemis I mission. More

MARE Vibration test A first vibration test was carried out with HELGA at the DLR Institute of Space Systems in Bremen. This test simulated the acceleration values to which HELGA will be subjected during the launch of the Artemis I mission. More

MARE Fit check A "fit check" for all experiments flying during the Artemis I mission was performed at NASA-JSC, Houston USA in October 2019. With this check it was tested and verified for the first time how HELGA and ZOHAR will be integrated into the ORION spacecraft by colleagues from NASA-KSC in Florida shortly before the launch of the Artemis I mission. More

MARE at the IAC in Washington The MARE hardware was presented at the DLR booth during the 70th IAC congress in Washington, USA in October 2019. More

Downloads

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MARE - Factsheet

MARE – LOGO

MARE - flickr
 

Links

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Video:

Die ers­ten „Mond-Astro­nau­tin­nen“ keh­ren zu­rück nach Köln - Quickchannel

MARE: Der Strahlenbelastung auf dem Weg zum Mond auf der Spur - YouTube

TV:

Wie hoch ist die Strahlung bei einem Flug zum Mond? (Quarks/WDR)

Strahlenrisiko für Astronauten? (Wissen/nano/3sat)

Radio:

Deutschlandradio: FORSCHUNG AKTUELL: Ein Phantom namens Helga: Deutschland schickt einen Astronauten-Dummy zum Mond (Autor: Meyer, Guido)

DLR:

MARE – Radiation exposure on a journey to the Moon

DLR phan­toms un­der­go fit check in NASA’s Ori­on space cap­sule

Hel­ga and Zo­har: ra­di­a­tion ex­po­sure on the way to the Moon

DLR-magazine: HIGH-TECH TRAVELLERS FLY TO THE MOON (Download)

ESA:

RADIATION SCIENCE FOR ORION (ESA BLOG)

THE RADIATION FACTOR (ESA BLOG)

SHIELDING ASTRONAUTS FROM SPACE RADIATION ON THE WAY TO THE MOON (ESA BLOG)

NASA:

Orion Manikins Return from Artemis I Mission | NASA

ARTEMIS I press kit

Orion “Passengers” on Artemis I to Test Radiation Vest for Deep Space Missions

Artemis I Space Radiation Research to Help Moon, Mars Explorers | NASA

Talks:

Lichtjahre voraus 2020: Die Gefahren der Weltraumstrahlung und das MARE-Experiment

ISPCS 2017 - Thomas Berger "Exploration Missions and Radiation"
 

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