You’re based at Artemis Station on the lunar south pole, and you’re monitoring your 12 autonomous rovers that are exploring the surrounding terrain for signs of water ice or other essentials minerals. They’re about 3 kilometers out when you suddenly get a NASA Alert for an incoming solar storm. You know the rovers won’t return to base before the storm hits, but you’re calm knowing the rovers all recently got retrofitted with the latest hair-thin nanotube shielding to protect them from the harsh electromagnetic waves and radiation.
While this scenario is likely years away, this isn’t stopping present-day researchers led by the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) from pushing the limits of shielding technologies for electronics on Earth and in space. Results from their development of a new hair-thin composite shielding technology was recently published in Advanced Materials and holds the potential to provide enhanced shielding for future astronauts and robotic explorers on future long-term space missions in both Earth orbit and beyond.
The study notes the motivation for this next-generation shielding technology comes from a need for flexible, lightweight, and durable shielding to accommodate a diverse range of spacecraft platforms. The team combined two types of nanotubes that can reflect electromagnetic waves and absorb neutron radiation, respectively.
The researchers found that not only can this composite shielding be 3D-printed and is highly elastic, but testing revealed its material was found to reflect 99.999 percent of incoming electromagnetic waves and absorbing approximately 72 percent of neutron radiation. In addition to aerospace, the researchers aspire to use this composite shielding for defense and medical applications. It can also withstand vast temperature swings between -196 degrees Celsius to 250 degrees Celsius (-321 degrees Fahrenheit to 482 degrees Fahrenheit).
"This material represents a completely new concept in shielding technology-it is as thin as tape and as flexible as rubber yet simultaneously blocks both electromagnetic waves and radiation." said Dr. Joo Young-ho, who is a principal researcher at KIST’s Extreme Environment Shielding Materials Research Center and a co-author on the study. "This technology is significant for securing the advanced materials and establishing the domestic production infrastructure necessary for realizing the space age. We plan to further enhance its performance through structural design optimization and actively pursue its application in actual industrial settings."
This study comes as Artemis 2 recently completed its journey around the Moon, marking the first time humans have ventured beyond low Earth orbit and into the Moon’s vicinity since Apollo 17 in 1972. This is slated to be followed by Artemis 3 in 2027, which will serve as an Earth orbit docking mission with either SpaceX’s Starship or Blue Origin’s Blue Moon lander. Finally, Artemis IV will serve as the first human landing on the lunar surface since Apollo 17, which will occur at the lunar south pole. The ultimate goal will use subsequent missions to slowly build the lunar base that NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman recently announced using parts of the Lunar Gateway that was canceled.
The study uses NASA’s Psyche mission to emphasize the importance of advanced shielding technology for identifying and mining space resources. Along with the aforementioned Moon base, the commercial space industry has gained enormous traction regarding Moon and Mars exploration. Accomplishing such feats will require mining space resources to mitigate the need for relying on supplies from Earth, a process known as in situ resource utilization (ISRU). Therefore, long-term space missions could benefit from advanced shielding to ensure spacecraft longevity and resilience to the extreme space environment.
How will this 3D-printable shielding technology help protect astronauts on future space missions in the coming years and decades? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!
As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!