On a Long Trip to Mars, Cosmic Radiation May Damage Astronauts' Brains

Key to the ambitious endeavor, however, is ensuring the astronauts' safety, which may be difficult, according to a NASA-funded study published yesterday (Oct. 10) in the journal Scientific Reports. The new study, in rodents, shows that astronauts could suffer from a phenomenon called "space brain" during the long trip to Mars, as cosmic radiation bombards their bodies and damages their brain cells. Researchers exposed the laboratory-bound rodents to a level of radiation similar to that expe