Astronauts who took part in the Apollo missions could have confront more affection problems due to their exposure to astronomic cosmic rays , harmonize to a late field of study inScientific Reports .

The Apollo programme was NASA ’s human spaceflight project that   first land Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the Moon in July 1969 . Between 1961 and   1972 , the plan plunge 24 men into deep quad , of which eight are   now departed , and others who only flew into low-spirited - Earth eye socket .

Researchers at Florida State University regain that 43 pct of deceased Apollo spaceman who flew into rich blank died from a cardiovascular problem . That ’s nearly five time high than astronauts who have traveled in low - dry land orbit or did not fly .

Although31 percentof people die out from cardiovascular diseases worldwide , these late finding are particularly unknown considering that spaceman are extremely educated , have entree to the good aesculapian care , and typically have healthy lifestyle . The only difference between these men and the wider populationwas theirexposure to cryptical blank space radiation , particularly in the mannikin of high - energy ions like 56 - Fe .

“ We sleep with very little about the effects of mystifying space radiation syndrome on human health , peculiarly on the cardiovascular system , ” tether researcher Professor Michael Delp said in astatement . “ This gives us the first glance into its adverse burden on humans . ”

In a push to test this hypothesis , the scientists also exposed group of mice to the same type of radiation for more than six month that the Apollo astronaut experienced . They rule that the mice ’s arteries showed signs of impairment that   can lead to atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease .

“ What the mouse data show is that deep outer space radioactivity is harmful to vascular health , ” Delp added .

However ,   NASA have oppugn the finding , reason that the current datum and sample size is too circumscribed , according toReuters . It ’s also deserving considering that the mouse were " blasted " with irradiation for six months – what the researchers say is the equivalent weight of 20 human years . The Apollo astronauts would have only have been out of Earth ’s magnetic shield for a affair of days , so it could be considered a jump to say there ’s a verbatim   link   between these few day of exposure and cardiovascular disease .