NPI CAS organised the 29th international WRMISS workshop

The Nuclear Physics Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences (NPI CAS) organised the 29th International WRMISS Workshop (Workshop on Radiation Monitoring to assess human exposures Inside the Solar System) in Prague from 1 to 3 September 2026. The meeting, focused on measuring and assessing the radiation environment in space, was held in cooperation with the Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering of the Czech Technical University in Prague (FNSPE CTU), which provided the venue for the workshop.

An International Meeting of Experts

The workshop brought together 48 experts from 11 countries. Participants included representatives of NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), the German Aerospace Center (DLR), Japan’s National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology (QST), GSI Helmholtzzentrum, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Southwest Research Institute and the Italian Space Agency (ASI). Czech institutions were also represented, including NPI CAS, FNSPE CTU, the Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics of CTU, VSB – Technical University of Ostrava, ADVACAM and Stellar Nuclear. Over the three days, 12 scientific sessions were held, covering measurement results, new detectors and approaches to assessing radiation exposure.

The programme focused on measuring and assessing the radiation environment to which humans are exposed in space. Discussions covered measurement results from the International Space Station (ISS), radiation conditions around the Moon and on Mars, as well as individual components of cosmic radiation. The programme also addressed the development and testing of new detectors and active and passive dosimetry systems, neutron radiation measurements, space weather, data processing and the assessment of radiation exposure during future human missions. Results from both Artemis missions and from the surface of Mars were also presented. As human exploration expands beyond low Earth orbit, there is an increasing need to accurately characterise the radiation environment that astronauts will encounter during these missions.

Research at NPI CAS

Researchers from NPI CAS also contributed to the scientific programme. Dr Martin Kákona presented measurement results obtained with the SPACEDOS detector during passages through regions of increased radiation over the South Atlantic. Dr Ondřej Ploc and Dr Jakub Šlegl presented the CZPAD (Czech Personal Active Dosimeter) experiment, one of 13 experiments selected for the planned mission of a Czech astronaut to the ISS.

The local organisation of the workshop involved NPI CAS and FNSPE CTU. The programme also included a scientific excursion to Milešovka, where participants visited the meteorological observatory and the local CRREAT infrastructure, including a neutron monitor, the SEVAN detector and other instruments. The participants also came together for a conference dinner at the Charles Bridge Museum, followed by an evening boat trip along the Vltava and Čertovka.

From the ISS to the Moon and Mars

WRMISS has a history spanning almost three decades. The first workshop was held in 1996 on the initiative of Dr Günther Reitz of DLR and originally focused primarily on monitoring the radiation environment on the International Space Station. As space research has developed, the scope of the workshop has gradually expanded to include the radiation environment that humans will encounter during future missions to the Moon and Mars. The current name, Workshop on Radiation Monitoring to assess human exposures Inside the Solar System, thus reflects the workshop’s evolution from monitoring the radiation environment on the ISS to the broader challenge of protecting humans from cosmic radiation during the exploration of the Solar System.

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