Coloration of Glasses Induced by Space Ionizing Radiation

The optical stabilities of several glasses (K9-HL glass, JGS3 silica glass, K509 glass and JGS1 silica glass) under conditions of ionizing radiation (proton flux, electron flux) were studied. Additionally, using the simu- lation results of space ionizing radiation by SPENVIS and CREME-MC, optical lives of these four glasses serving in a given orbital (perigee 350 km, apogee 425 km, orbital inclination 51.6 o ) were analysed. It can be found that being used for more than 10 years in this given orbital, the optical transmission of the K9-HL glass evidently de- creased, while the optical transmission of the other three glasses (JGS3 silica glass, K509 glass and JGS1 silica glass) didn't change or changed a little and they can serve as good optical materials in the given space orbital. Be- cause most of the space particles (ionizing radiation) can be effectively inhibited or absorbed in some penetration depth of the glass, the space ionizing radiation can only color a surface layer of the glass, as a result, an anti-radiation glass layer can be put outside the window of a long duration spacecraft in order to reduce ionizing ir- radiation, and the layer can be made of silica glass.