title: Radiation dosimetry and biophysical models of space radiation effects.
abstract: Estimating the biological risks from space radiation remains a difficult problem because of the many radiation types including protons, heavy ions, and secondary neutrons, and the absence of epidemiology data for these radiation types. Developing useful biophysical parameters or models that relate energy deposition by space particles to the probabilities of biological outcomes is a complex problem. Physical measurements of space radiation include the absorbed dose, dose equivalent, and linear energy transfer (LET) spectra. In contrast to conventional dosimetric methods, models of radiation track structure provide descriptions of energy deposition events in biomolecules, cells, or tissues, which can be used to develop biophysical models of radiation risks. In this paper, we address the biophysical description of heavy particle tracks in the context of the interpretation of both space radiation dosimetry and radiobiology data, which may provide insights into new approaches to these problems.
authors.affiliation: NASA Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, USA. fcucinot@ems.jsc.nasa.gov
authors.forename: Francis A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Cucinotta
authors.forename: Honglu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Mark R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Shavers
authors.forename: Kerry
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: George
mesh_terms: D018480:Astronauts; D003359:Cosmic Radiation; D004247:DNA / Q000528:radiation effects; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D006801:Humans; D018499:Linear Energy Transfer; D008954:Models, Biological; D009381:Neoplasms, Radiation-Induced; D011835:Radiation Protection / Q000592:standards; D011853:Radiobiology; D011874:Radiometry; D018570:Risk Assessment; D019445:Solar Activity
chemical_list: D004247:DNA