Collins Aerospace continues to test spacesuits for future extravehicular activities on the International Space Station

In recent months there has been talk about New space suits Which Axiom Space is creating (also in collaboration with Prada) for future Artemis missions to the moon. Development is currently underway, and promises to produce clothing that is easier to wear and easier to use than those used on the Apollo missions. However, these wouldn't be the only spacesuits that could be used in space. SpaceX is developing a custom model for Polaris' special space missions, including Dawn, which is currently scheduled no earlier than summer 2024. Finally Collins Space Develops the custom version for Extravehicular activities (Eva et al “spacewalk”) On the International Space Station.

In this case the Extravehicular Exploration Services or xEVAS contract was awarded by NASA (Similar to Axiom Space) and aims to provide solutions that achieve improvements compared to the space suits used so far. these New space suits They will be used on board International Space Stationbefore being decommissioned in the early 2030s, but also for future commercial space stations that could be in orbit before 2030.

Collins Aerospace and testing new NASA spacesuits

second According to the American company Tests are also continuing at different levels on the advice of former astronauts Astronauts Together with production partners ILC Dover H Ocean climbing. One of the most recent tests conducted was on board an aircraft simulating weightlessness to verify its use in conditions similar to those found in space.

Collins Space In collaboration with a team of experts, we evaluated the fit and function of the suit's pressure systems and the user interface used for communications with International Space Station. Although spacesuits are still under development, the idea is to have models that are adaptable to different body types (both male and female).

the Next generation space suit to Collins Space It will also be lighter and take up less volume than the current version. The interesting aspect is that the design was originally designed to be upgradeable and thus can be modified without having to completely redesign the suit. In the future, the suit will be tested inside a NASA swimming pool to fully simulate extravehicular activity in terms of duration and type of movements and operations that will be performed. Even if it is a contract Collins Space Looking at the International Space Station, the company announced that it is considering using these same suits (with some modifications) also in the lunar environment to expand their areas of use.