How much radiation exposure did the astronauts encounter in the VanAllen belt?

Answer 1

The existence of the Van Allen radiation belts postulated in the 1940s by Nicholas Christofilos. Their existence was confirmed in *1958* by the Explorer I satellite launched by the USA.

The radiation in the Van Allen radiation belts is not particularly strong. You would have to hang out there for a week or so in order to get radiation sickness. And, because the radiation is not particularly strong, a few millimeters of metal is all that is required for protection. "An object satellite shielded by 3 mm of aluminum will receive about 2500 rem (25 Sv) per *year*."

"In practice, Apollo astronauts who travelled to the moon spent very little time in the belts and received a harmless dose. [6]. Nevertheless NASA deliberately timed Apollo launches, and used lunar transfer orbits that only skirted the edge of the belt over the equator to minimise the radiation." When the astronauts returned to Earth, their dosimeters showed that they had received about as much radiation as a couple of medical X-rays.

Answer 2

While I can't find or calculate a numerical answer for you, I can tell you that the engineers at NASA calculated and timed the Apollo launches at a time when the Van Allen belt was weak at the equator. The time that the vessel actually spent being radiated from the belt resulted in the astronauts receiving only small, harmless doses from the belt.

Answer 3

The radiation in the Van Allen belts are different from radiation on Earth. The amount of radiation the astronauts were exposed to where nil, and have no health affects on them.