> PS: The Van Allen belt is a storage ring type of radiation > a tin can and some mylar or gold foil should be enough, > especially if you don't spend hours on end inside it Which particular "end" do have to point away from the radiation to be safe ? ;-) The conspiracists made a big deal about everything apart from lunar projects being sub-Van Allen Belt orbit, but of course that makes perfect sense. Why risk expensive hardware if you don't have to -- http://www.piclist.com hint: The PICList is archived three different ways. See http://www.piclist.com/#archives for details.