New research published in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion (PPCF) shows how knowledge gained from the pursuit of nuclear fusion research may reduce the threat from energetic particles to austronauts to acceptable levels, making man's first mission to Mars a much greater possibility.
Solar energetic particles, although just part of the 'cosmic rays' spectrum, are of great concern for space travel because they are the most likely to cause deadly radiation damage to the astronauts.
The paper 'The Interactions of a flowing plasma with a dipole magnetic field: measurements and modelling of a diamagnetic cavity relevant to spacecraft protection' by R Bamford et al will be free to read online until the end of June 2009, as a service to the plasma physics community.
Dr. Ruth Bamford, one of the lead researchers at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, said, "These initial experiments have shown promise and that it may be possible to shield astronauts from deadly space weather".
Read the full news story about this paper.
Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion is pleased to announce that a special issue on the interrelationship between plasma phenomena in the laboratory and in space is now available online.
This fascinating special issue contains 19 papers investigating the alliance between plasma physicists and space science experimenters. It includes papers on topics ranging from the creation of artificial auroral lights in the ionosphere of Earth, to the measurement of oscillations in the induced magnetosphere of Mars.
'The intention of this special issue is to promote the interpretation of scientific results in a broader context by sharing data, methods, knowledge, perspectives and reasoning within this alliance' says Professor Mark Koepke, Guest Editor of this issue.
Below is a selection of journal papers recently published in PPCF on the subject of space and astrophysical plasmas, or the interrelationship between laboratory and space plasma experiments. Note that access to the full text of these articles is subject to subscription status.
Modeling solar energetic particle by a relativistic kappa-type distribution2008 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 50 062001
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/50/6/062001Tag this article
Two-dimensional PIC simulations of ion beam instabilities in Supernova-driven plasma flows2008 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 50 065020
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/50/6/065020Tag this article
Unified electrodynamic theory of magnetorotational and related instabilities in a rotating plasma2008 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 50 085012
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/50/8/085012Tag this article
The interaction of a flowing plasma with a dipole magnetic field: measurements and modelling of a diamagnetic cavity relevant to spacecraft protection2008 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 50 124025
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/50/12/124025Tag this article
Aspects of stochastic transport in laboratory and astrophysical plasmas2008 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 50 124027
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/50/12/124027Tag this article
Physics, simulation and diagnostics of Hall effect thrusters2008 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 50 124041
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/50/12/124041Tag this article
Simulation of zonal flow excitation by drift mode turbulence: applications to tokamaks and the magnetopause2008 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 50 124048
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/50/12/124048Tag this article
Blue jets and gigantic jets: transient luminous events between thunderstorm tops and the lower ionosphere2008 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 50 124050
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/50/12/124050Tag this article
High-Mach number collisionless shock and photo-ionized non-LTE plasma for laboratory astrophysics with intense lasers2008 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 50 124057
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/50/12/124057Tag this article
Spherical expansion of a collisionless plasma into vacuum: self-similar solution and ab initio simulations2009 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 51 015004
doi: 10.1088/0741-3335/51/1/015004Tag this article
American Geophysical Union (AGU)
2008 AGU Fall Meeting
2009 Joint Assembly
The 9th International Workshop on the Interrelationship between Plasma Experiments in Laboratory and Space
The 10th International Workshop on the Interrelationship between Plasma Experiments in Laboratory and Space
M Fannes and J Wouters 2009 J. Phys. A: Math. Theor. 42 465308
C Cornaggia 2009 J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 42 161002
A N Grum-Grzhimailo et al 2009 J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 42 171002
Banamali Roy et al 2008 Phys. Scr. 2008 014046
T J Quinn 1999 Metrologia 36 77
N L S Martin et al 2009 J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 42 225201
Andrea Montanari et al J. Stat. Mech. (2008) P04004
I Vurgaftman et al 2009 New J. Phys. 11 125015
P I Hurtado et al J. Stat. Mech. (2006) P02004
Sharly Fleischer et al 2009 New J. Phys. 11 105039