Here there be radiation dragons

‘Here there be dragons’ – medieval mapmakers would daub such warnings on dangerous or unknown recesses of mariners’ charts. Fast forward to the 21^st century and the space surrounding our planet holds ‘dragons’ of its own: fierce radiation belts that surround Earth, Jupiter and other planets, and storms of particles originating from the Sun that travel far into space. A dedicated class of engineers work to safeguard space missions from such dangers.