Cosmic ray effects on matter at high altitudes
- Paper ID
IAF-55-09
- author
- company
University of Maryland
- country
U.S.A.
- year
1955
- abstract
The physical effects of cosmic radiation on matter, both inanimate and biological, are divided into 1) atomic effects and 2) nuclear effects. The former have been investigated intensively, although the biological effects of heavy primaries are unknown at present. The nuclear effects are discussed for the first time; they are small but cumulative. Numerical values are given and a calculation is described for gauging their biological effectiveness. The shielding problems against heavy primaries and nuclear disintegrations are similar; the optimum shield is hydrogenous material (water, kerosene or similar fuels) for reasons stated in the paper. The problem of cosmic-ray induced radioactivity is discussed, in particular the radioactivity of the moon's surface.