In space, astronauts experience a number of changes that could affect their health. Understanding these effects of weightlessness, as well as how to treat them, will be vital to a successful future for humans in space. Since the environment of space alters multiple, interacting biological systems – including bones, muscles, the heart, blood flow, and the immune system – sometimes it is better to study everything at once in the entire organism. This can be achieved by working with research model organisms, such as mice and other rodents. Given their genetic similarity to humans, studying mice allows scientists to gain insight into the workings of the human body. The rodents’ faster development and shorter life span reveal effects of microgravity on a shorter timescale, and the chance to fly dozens of small rodents on each mission yields much more data from which to draw scientific conclusions. Below, is a downloadable excel file containing relevant radiation dosimetry for rodent research.
Downloadable table: RR_Radiation_Data_5-5-23.xlsx
- Note: The absorbed doses are typically measured with a high degree of precision. However due to confounding factors, in particular the differences in local shielding around the payload and around the instrument, unless otherwise noted the doses to the payload should be considered to be accurate to within ~10%, based on known variations to the radiation dose across ISS modules.
- Times are UTC
- Doses are in water based on standard conversion from dose in silicon.
- Doses include approximate dose received on launch vehicle before transfer to the ISS. Since there was no dosimetry on the launch vehicle, dose is approximated based on average values in the US Lab.
- Data are cumulative absorbed doses from preliminary analysis of results from instruments on the International Space Station, analyzed by subject matter experts from the Space Radiation Analysis Group (SRAG), NASA-JSC. (https://srag.jsc.nasa.gov/)
For more detailed data, contact SRAG, through GeneLab: https://genelab.nasa.gov/help/contact
Use of the data are subject to the following rules:
- Data for internal NASA use or for use by NASA-funded or outside investigators are to be obtained directly from the GLDS (https://genelab.nasa.gov/environmental/radiation)
- Use of the data in publications or presentations shall require:
- Consultation with SRAG for data integrity and interpretation.
- Acknowledgement of one or more subject matter experts from SRAG.
