ISS Miniature Array of Radiation Sensors Dosimeter Measurements and Modeling

The Miniature Array of Radiation Sensors (MARS) is an NRL experiment that was flown on the International Space Station from September 2013 to September 2015 as part of the STP-H4 suite of payloads. The objective was to provide... [ view full abstract ]

The Miniature Array of Radiation Sensors (MARS) is an NRL experiment that was flown on the International Space Station from September 2013 to September 2015 as part of the STP-H4 suite of payloads. The objective was to provide an array of persistent, ubiquitous sensors that monitor the total ionizing radiation dose on the host spacecraft for 3-D radiation modeling.   These sensors are analogous to a spacecraft state of health sensor, for example a thermistor, in that they have a small footprint, low mass, and minimal power and telemetry requirement to the spacecraft bus. Each sensor provides the radiation dose for a given level of shielding at one location on the spacecraft. This can be used for verification of space radiation shielding models. In addition, a new material, Demron, is being examined and its shielding effectiveness is being compared to aluminum. NASA and NRL are collaborating to compare results for low Earth orbit (LEO) from the International Space Station (ISS). This talk willl provide an overview of the MARS data and the modeling to date.