Whipple shield
The Whipple Shield , invented by Fred Whipple , is a type of high-speed impact shield used to protect manned and unmanned spacecraft from collisions with micrometeorites and space debris, which generally travel at speeds between 3 and 18 km / s.
In contrast to the monolithic protection of the first spaceships, Whipple shields consist of a relatively thin outer impact layer that is attached at a short distance from the actual spaceship wall. The impact layer does not have the task of completely stopping the approaching particles or even absorbing the majority of their energy, but is intended to break up and disperse them, which divides the original particle energy between many fragments and thus distributes it thinner over a larger wall area. She is more likely to resist it. This can be illustrated by the fact that you only need a lighter bullet-resistant vest to hold up a load of shot , compared to a more massive vest that would be required to withstand a single rifle bullet with the same total mass and kinetic energy . While a Whipple shield reduces the overall mass of the spacecraft when compared to solid shields, which is always desirable in space travel, the volume enclosed between the layers may require a larger payload fairing .
There are several variations of the simple Whipple shield. Multi-shock shields like the one deployed in the Stardust probe use multiple detached layers to increase the level of protection for the probe. Whipple shields that have a filling between the rigid layers are called filled Whipple shields . The filling of these shields is usually made of a high-strength material such as Kevlar or Nextel alumina fibers. The type of shield, material, thickness and spacing between the layers are varied in order to obtain a shield with minimal mass and yet minimal chance of breakdown. There are over 100 different shield configurations on the International Space Station alone , with more elaborate protection for areas at higher risk of impact.
See also
Web links
- Shield Development - NASA
- BG Cour-Palais' on the Apollo meteorite protection program (English)
- The Skylab meteoroid shield design and development - NASA
- Giotto, ESA's first deep-space mission: 25 years ago ( Memento from July 31, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
- Meteoroid / Debris Protection System Development at ESA for ATV and Columbus
- Hyper-velocity impact test at JAXA of Kibo's debris shield
Individual evidence
- ↑ Fred L. Whipple: Meteorites and space travel. In: The Astronomical Journal . tape 52 , 1947, ISSN 0004-6256 , pp. 131 , doi : 10.1086 / 106009 .
- ^ Burton G. Cour-Palais, Jeanne L. Crews: A multi-shock concept for spacecraft shielding . In: International Journal of Impact Engineering . tape 10 , no. 1-4 , 1990, pp. 135-146 , doi : 10.1016 / 0734-743X (90) 90054-Y .
- ↑ Patent US5067388 : Hypervelocity Impact Shield. Filed April 30, 1990 , published November 26, 1991 , Applicant: NASA, Inventor: Burton G. Cour-Palais, Jeanne L. Crews.
- ↑ Eric L. Christiansen, Jeanne L. Crews, Jennifer H. Robinson, Joel E. Williamsen, Angela M. Nolen: Enhanced meteoroid and orbital debris shielding . In: International Journal of Impact Engineering . tape 17 , no. 1-3 , 1995, pp. 217-228 , doi : 10.1016 / 0734-743X (95) 99848-L .
- ↑ Patent US5610363 : Enhanced Whipple Shield. Filed February 15, 1995 , published March 11, 1997 , applicant: US ARMY, inventor: Eric L. Christiansen, Jeanne L. Crews, Jennifer H. Robinson, Joel E. Williamsen, Angela M. Nolen.
- ↑ 3M Nextel Ceramic Fabric Offers Space Age Protection. (PDF) 3M Company, accessed September 4, 2011 .
- ↑ Eric L. Christiansen: Meteoroid / Debris Shielding, TP − 2003-210788. (PDF) National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington DC, 2003, p. 13 , accessed March 3, 2018 .