Interstellar Space Isn't Trying Hard Enough to Kill Us

Scientists calculate whether it's just plain impossible to survive interstellar
journeys, as a solution to the Fermi Paradox (spoilers - it isn't).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdP_UDSsuro

The amount of shielding the ISM eats away during a 4.3 light year
journey is on the order of maybe a mm to cm or so. This is much
smaller than the roughly 1m thick water shielding you'd want all
around, for long term GCR shielding, anyway. (That GCR shielding
assumes no medical advances with respect to cancer, and also that
you aren't willing to accept some increased cancer risk.)

So basically, if you care about long term cancer risk shielding, the best
shape for your crew habitat is roughly spherical, rather than the long thin
shape often assumed to minimize frontal area while plowing through
the interstellar medium.

#Space #SpaceExploration #SpaceTechnology #SpaceScience