Scientists from the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California have found that toxic dust storms on Mars could be a serious problem for the first missions with astronauts.
A new study led by Justing Wang, MD, and his colleagues notes that Martian dust storms can cause respiratory illnesses in the first astronauts, so it is important to prepare for this in advance.
These storms also create challenges for robotic devices, causing electrostatic interference, which poses a threat to electronic devices and can lead to dust accumulation on solar panels. Over the next few decades, NASA and the Chinese space agency plan to send the first missions with astronauts to Mars. As part of these missions, astronauts will stay on the red planet for many months and have to create reliable habitats.
Each a year on Mars is 686.98 Earth days, during which regional dust storms occur on the planet. Every three Martian years, equal to 5.5 years on Earth, these storms cover the entire territory of the red planet.
In the period from 2018 to 2022, the spacecraft Opportunity Rover and InSight Lander are out of service due to the inability to consume enough energy caused by dust storms. Sending the first astronauts to Mars is fraught with many challenges, including logistical issues and numerous health risks.
Over the past 20 years, the shortest distance between Mars and the Earth was 55 million kilometers, which is about 142 times the distance between the Earth and the Moon. This was in 2003, and it was the closest approach of the two planets in more than 50 thousand years. Using traditional methods, the one-way flight time would have been 6 to 9 months, during which the astronauts would have experienced significant physiological changes due to the effects of microgravity.
These changes would include muscle atrophy, decreased bone density, weakening of the cardiovascular system, and others. At the same time, the astronauts’ return to Earth could take about 3 years, of which at least a year would have to be spent in the Martian gravity, which is only 36.5% of Earth’s. This should also include the risk of radioactive exposure during the astronauts’ work on the surface of the red planet.
«There are many potentially toxic elements that astronauts may be exposed to on Mars. The most important is that in addition to basalt dust and nanophase iron, there is a large amount of quartz dust that can damage the lungs and cause respiratory diseases. What makes the dust on Mars more dangerous is that the average particle size is much smaller than the minimum mucus size that our lungs can expel back, so it is likely to lead to diseases», — warns Justin Wang.
The astronauts of the «Apollo» mission also said that lunar regolith stuck to their spacesuits and almost all surfaces inside the spacecraft. Upon returning to Earth, the astronauts complained of coughing, throat irritation, watery eyes, and blurred vision.
«Silica directly causes silicosis, which is generally considered an occupational disease for workers exposed to silica (i.e. in mining and construction). Silicosis and exposure to toxic iron dust are reminiscent of coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, which is common in coal miners and is colloquially referred to as black lung disease», — Justin Wang emphasizes.
In addition, Martian dust contains toxic components, including perchlorates, silica, iron oxides (rust), gypsum, and traces of toxic metals, including chromium, beryllium, arsenic, and cadmium.
«It is much more difficult to treat astronauts on Mars for diseases, as the transit time is much longer than for other previous missions to the ISS and the Moon. In this case, we must be prepared for a wide range of health problems that astronauts may develop during their long-term missions. In addition, [microgravity and radiation] have a negative impact on the human body, can make astronauts more vulnerable to diseases and complicate treatment. In particular, radiation exposure can cause lung disease, which can exacerbate the effects of dust on astronauts’ lungs», — the study authors conclude.
Transportation of medicines to Mars is also a challenge. In case of emergency, astronauts will also not be able to be immediately returned to Earth for treatment.
The study is published in the journal GeoHealth
Source: ScienceAlert
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