The astronauts on the Artemis missions, NASA's next program to send the first woman and the first person of color to the moon, will wear the latest spacesuit, called the exploration extravehicular mobility unit, also known as xEMU.
NASA revealed a ground prototype of the new exploration extravehicular mobility unit in 2019 at NASA Headquarters in Washington.One of the main components is the cooling garment, said Richard Rhodes, the deputy lead for xEMU pressure garment development at NASA. The garment is made of tubes that circulate water around the astronaut, regulating body temperature and removing excess heat as they completes their work.
The gloves are one of the most complicated parts of the spacesuit, and they are often the greatest source of complaints astronauts have about their suits, Lewis said. Much of an astronaut's spacesuit training is in a pool at NASA's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory in Houston. The water simulates the feeling of weightlessness, which is similar to how it feels in space.Scientists have experimented with different materials and had varying degrees of success over the years. At one point, Lewis said researchers experimented with Kevlar fingertips on the gloves.
On the outside of a spacesuit, there are colored stripes unique to each suit. This is how astronauts can tell who is in each suit when out in space, Lewis said.Making the Artemis spacesuits Over the last four years, NASA has invested over $300 million in the development of the xEMU, Rhodes said. His team has tested dozens of components and weighed the advantages and disadvantages of each option.
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