From: vince@offshore.ai (Vincent Cate)
Newsgroups: sci.space.policy,sci.space.tech,sci.space.science
Subject: Re: Apollo and the van Allen belts
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In a 3rd book, "Spaceflight Dynamics", Wiesel, 1989, page 255, they 
say that Apollo did in fact go near the edge (high latitudes) of 
the Van Allen belts.  I quote:

> In a 300-km-altitude circular orbit, the daily radiation dose to an 
> unshielded human being would be only about 0.1 rad.  However, at the
> maximum intensity point within the Van Allen belts (at about  3000 km
> over the equator), an astronaut would receive a dose of about 300 rads
> per day.  Apollo spacecraft are the only manned vehicles ever to 
> penetrate this region, and they crossed the belts at moderately high
> latitudes and during the highest speed portion of their flight, so the
> accumulated dose to their crews was within acceptable limits.

  -- Vince