A Whipple Micrometeoroid Shield for a Habitat Pressure Shell: Bumper Spacing, Rear-Wall Thickness and Mass per Area
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: This paper presents a computed design for a Whipple shield in which a thin outer bumper shatters and disperses an incoming micrometeoroid before its debris cloud reaches the pressure wall, so protection comes from spacing and disruption rather than from a single thick plate. The study is simulated, not measured. Using the stated assumptions in the Methods and the deposited calculation, the headline results are: ke = 159, bumper = 1.8, rear = 3.5, areal = 15.5, mass = 2643. All quantities are derived in the accompanying script, which writes the full numerical record to results.json, including inputs, outputs and, where relevant, a parameter sweep. The design is assessed on its computed performance, its mass and power budgets where relevant, and its failure behaviour. Where the computed result is impractical, that outcome is stated plainly in the abstract's terms as well as in the Discussion: the numbers, not the intention, decide whether the principle is attractive at the stated scale. No measurement of a built system is reported, and no flight performance is claimed.
Author: Aldred, William Alexander
Language: English
Subfield: Mechanics of Materials
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7225835357