2019-06-01_All_About_Space

says astronauts will use this lunar-orbit space

station as a staging post for exploration missions to

Earth’s natural satellite and eventually to the Red

Planet. They’ll travel there on the Orion spacecraft

and will need suitable protection both inside and

outside the craft.

“An astronaut that lands on the Moon will carry

out spacewalks, conduct geology in the field,

deploy science experiments, collect and analyse

samples, prepare samples for Earth return, report

observations to Earth and drive lunar rovers,” Madill

says. Since humanity’s next destination on the

Moon will be the extreme and alien landscape

of the lunar south pole where temperatures as low

as -238 degrees Celsius (-396 degrees Fahrenheit)

have been recorded, the suit they wear will need to

withstand the harsh conditions.

As such, designing a spacesuit, Madill says, has

to draw on multiple skills. It requires knowledge

of textiles, engineering, material science and

atmospheric science all rolled into one. “Right

now astronauts going to the ISS have a specialised

spacesuit geared for spacewalks in low-Earth orbit,”

she continues. “But different suits will be needed if

we want to go to the Moon, and they’ll have to be

tailored to the lunar environment.” Spacesuits also

need to take into account internal danger.

Alookatthespacesuitswhichcouldendupreplacingthecurrentcrop

Z-2 s p a c e s u i t

Name of space agency/

private company: NASA

Key features

Hard upper torso

 Made for wearing

in space and

on planetary surfaces

Rear-entry hatch

Bubble helmet for

wide field of view

Carbon dioxide

continuously

removed

Prototype

eXploration

Suit (PXS)

Name of space agency/

private company:NASA

Key features

Entered via the rear

Focused on improving

suit fit

Seeking to minimise

the amount of

equipment needed

Can be customised

with 3D-printed

components

Compatible

with suitports

SpaceX spacesuit

Name of space

agency/private

company: SpaceX

Key features

 One-piece pressure

suit entered via

the inseam

 Needed in case of

in-flight emergency

White and

black design

Ta l l b o o t s a n d

motorcycle-style

helmet

Intended for use

on Crew Dragon

“One big difficulty is that they must operate with

pure oxygen inside, which means that everything

is f lammable and highly corrosive,” Southern says.

“This makes electronics, which are critical for

system operations, problematic. They must have

a liquid-cooling garment, a pressure garment, a

thermal garment, a micrometeoroid garment and an

outer garment in addition to other layers.”

NASA has also been working on a rear-entry

technology demonstrator suit called the Prototype

eXploration Suit (PXS) which focuses on improving

suit fit and performance while cutting the amount

of equipment that is needed for long-duration

missions. Uniquely, it has 3D-printable components

which could be created during missions to suit

different requirements on the fly.

“This suit could be used for EVAs in microgravity

or it could be further modified for walking on

planets,” Madill says. “The spacesuit has a Suit

Control Assembly, which is a box at the front of

the suit allowing the crew member to control

certain life-support components including pressure

and cooling and electronics (radio, volume). The

astronaut also has an insight into some of the

data that’s coming back and forth from the suit

computer to the display. The suit designers are

currently wearing and using the suit to see what

a a w t a n w t n

All aspects of

the spacesuit

are being

redesigned,

including the

lower layers

Starliner spacesuit
Name of space
agency/private
company: Boeing
Key features
 Lighter and
more flexible
Soft helmet with
zipper closure
Touchscreen-
sensitive gloves
Mobility joints in
shoulders and elbows
Dual-suit controller to
maintain pressure

Final Frontier

Design IVA

space suit

Name of space agency/

private company: Final

Frontier Design

Key features

 Full-pressure Intra

Vehicular Activity

safety garment

 For use in high-

altitude emergencies

Includes breathing

oxygen and

ventilation gas

Has parachute

interfaces and

communications

Lightweight and

inexpensive

Modified Advanced

Crew Escape Suit

Name of space agency/

private company: NASA

Key features

 Based on Advanced

Crew Escape Suit

 Increased mobility in

comparison and on

planetary surfaces

Closed-loop system

to preserve resources

Intended to support

crews flying to the

Moon or Mars

Full-pressure suit

for ascent and entry

during flight

SUGGESTED NEW DESIGNS

spacecraft

Spacesuit redesign