Microdosimeter flies on MidSTAR-1

In February, I had blogged about a new microdosimeter being developed by the National Space Biomedical Research Institute.  A few days ago, I received their latest newsletter.  In it there was a story about how it had been launched in March of this year as part of a multi-experiment payload aboard MidSTAR-1.

From their newsletter: “The goal of the MIDN (microdosimeter instrument) project is to develop a rugged, portable, lightweight radiation detection instrument that will measure the three forms of space radiation – solar flares, trapped particle radiation and galactic cosmic rays. When fully developed, the instrument will enable real-time measurement of radiation risk in space and risk of damage to body tissue.”

This device or one similar to it is going to be required, I’m sure, on all Space Elevator payloads, especially human ones, to ensure that the shielding is working properly. 

You can go here to read the newsletter with the rest of the story.  (Bob Munck alert – it’s a .pdf file)