“This is going to be such a much more flexible suit and the range of motion is really going to improve the astronauts’ ability to do all those tasks that they’re going to do while they’re out exploring on the lunar surface and eventually on Mars.” “This is this is a great example of what innovation can do,” said Peggy Whitson, retired NASA astronaut and current Axiom astronaut. The boots have been reinforced with extra insulation to keep the astronauts’ feet warm as they work in icy regions of the moon that never see sunlight. The light band will afford astronauts better visibility as they work in the permanently shadowed regions of the lunar south pole or go on spacewalks, said Russel Ralston, deputy program manager at Axiom Space.Ī hatch with two hinges located on the back of the suit allows astronauts to enter the spacesuit feet first, then shimmy into it, and a backpack provides the portable life support system. Axiom Space will develop, certify and produce the spacesuits and the company will “test the suit in a spacelike environment prior to the mission.”įeatures of the suit include an HD video camera and a light band mounted to the visor of the helmet. The new suit allows for more range of motion and flexibility and its design can accommodate at least 90% of the US male and female population, according to NASA. “Using innovative technologies, the new spacesuit will enable exploration of more of the lunar surface than ever before.” “Leveraging NASA’s Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (圎MU) spacesuit design, the Axiom Space spacesuits are built to provide increased flexibility, greater protection to withstand the harsh environment and specialized tools to accomplish exploration needs and expand scientific opportunities,” the company said in a news release. The space agency had previously unveiled a prototype design for lunar spacesuits in 2019, called 圎MU. The design of the spacesuits borrows from NASA’s own research. Our partnership is investing in America, supporting America’s workers, and demonstrating another example of America’s technical ingenuity that will position NASA and the commercial space sector to compete - and win - in the 21st century.”Īxiom Space, which holds the contract to develop spacesuits for NASA's Artemis Program, included its logo and company colors on a top cover over the spacesuits. “Building on NASA’s years of research and expertise, Axiom’s next generation spacesuits will not only enable the first woman to walk on the Moon, but they will also open opportunities for more people to explore and conduct science on the Moon than ever before. “NASA’s partnership with Axiom is critical to landing astronauts on the Moon and continuing American leadership in space,” said NASA administrator Bill Nelson in a statement. After astronauts land at the lunar south pole, the spacesuits will serve as mobile life support, allowing them to explore the lunar terrain on foot. The suits will serve a crucial role in NASA’s Artemis program, which seeks to return astronauts to the lunar surface later this decade on a mission dubbed Artemis III. We’re going to provide (access to) all of our facilities and we will be working together to make sure that we have a safe suit that performs and everything that our astronauts use for doing surface operations.” And now today, Axiom is going to innovate. “So for 40 years, we’ve been using the same suit based on that technology. “We have not had a new suit since the suits that we designed for the space shuttle and those suits are currently in use on the space station,” said Vanessa Wyche, director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center. The actual spacesuits worn by astronauts must be white “to reflect heat and protect astronauts from extreme high temperatures,” according to the release. An image of the A圎MU spacesuit Axiom Space unveiled Wednesday.
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