Van Allen Radiation Belts: An Important Challenge for Astrobiology Missions

Manned space missions account for a large proportion of future space travel missions.Van Allen radiation belts are major challenges of space missions with an astrobiology approach. In general, every living-being in space is affected by cosmic rays and solar charged particles. The amount of this radiation in two areas around the Earth, named Van Allen belts is significant. For example, planets exposed to radiation stress, due to DNA damage, has destructive effect on its growth, leading to reduced growth and genetic alteration. In this paper, effects of a Van Allen radiation belt on living organisms during space travel are investigated.