Inner Pressure Wall
Aluminum Pressure Wall Backing Whipple Shield
The inner pressure wall is a 2.5 mm thick welded Aluminum 6061-T6 plate with an areal density of 6.75 kg/m² that maintains habitat pressure containment while intercepting residual fragments behind an outer Whipple shield. Operating against the vacuum of space over a 100-year service life, the structure must preserve weld integrity under persistent lunar thermal cycling. Positioned directly ahead of internal radiation shielding, the wall establishes the habitat penetration limit, acting as the final metallic barrier against high-velocity micrometeoroid debris.
Inner aluminum pressure wall (2-3 mm thick) catching the final residual fragments and maintaining habitat pressure containment.
Purpose
Inner aluminum pressure wall (2-3 mm thick) catching the final residual fragments and maintaining habitat pressure containment.
Context
Child of L2-MMD-WHIP within the Lunar Ark system
Principles
- ▸Aluminum 2.5 mm thick rear wall (per 2024 lunar SWS baseline)
- ▸Welded construction for pressure integrity
- ▸Backed by L1-RAD radiation shielding on inner side
- ▸Penetration limit determines shield performance
- ▸Inspection via L3-MMD-DET-PRES leak detection
Typical implementations
- ▸ISS Service Module wall design
- ▸NASA HVIT test program
- ▸Lunar SWS rear wall (Springer 2024)
Lunar considerations
- ▸100-year mission with periodic inspection
- ▸Aluminum 6061-T6 thermal cycling tolerance
- ▸Welds inspected via L3-MMD-DET acoustic sensors
Specifications
Functional
| primary function | Inner aluminum pressure wall (2-3 mm thick) catching the final residual fragments and maintaining habitat pressure containment. |
| thickness mm | 2.5 |
| areal density kg per m2 | 6.75 |
Physical
| mass kg | 270 |
| materials | Aluminum 6061-T6 plate, Welded construction |
| vacuum compatibility | True |
Operational
| power consumption w | 0 |
| thermal range c | -40, 70 |
| lifetime years | 100 |
| mtbf hours | 1000000 |
Interfaces
Provides
- Pressure-containing wall
Requires
- Residual fragment input
- Structural integration
Cite this entry
Lunar Ark Codex. "Inner Pressure Wall" (L3-MMD-WHIP-WALL). Retrieved 10 September 2026, from https://lunarark.com/entry/L3-MMD-WHIP-WALL
Licensed CC-BY-SA 4.0. You may reuse and adapt this entry with attribution, under the same licence.