If humans are ever to venture into space on long-term missions, we have to find a way to protect from space radiation.
The high-energy particles and electromagnetic radiation that fill up space can tear through our DNA, sometimes beyond repair, it can cause cardiovascular disease and prohibit new brain cells from being generated.
At the moment we have no developed way to protect from this lethal radiation. Proposed solutions have ranged from using clay from asteroids as a shield, to underground houses on Mars made of Martian regolith, but these concepts are far from being realised.
Now, an Israeli company has brought us a step closer to overcoming this problem, with a radiation shield that could be used on the International Space Station (ISS) as early as next year.
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Abigail Beall 