The design of the Extravehicular Exploration Unit (xEMU) is the responsibility of the American company Axiom Space, but after a press release revealed, Now we know that Italian luxury fashion brand PRADA will also add a touch of elegance and innovation To the suits of the astronauts who will set foot on the moon after more than 50 years.
Let’s remember that in the same year, Axiom Space showed us several prototypes of AxEMU spacesuits. Now, Prada engineers will join the team that will work throughout the Artemis III spacesuit design process to bring design and excellence to the suits that NASA astronauts will wear. When they walk on the moon in 2025 (If everything goes as planned). The two companies will work side by side throughout production.
“Prada’s technical expertise in raw materials, manufacturing techniques and innovative design concepts will provide advanced technologies that will be essential not only to ensure the comfort of astronauts on the moon’s surface, but also As well as much needed considerations of human factors absent in older spacesuitsMichael Suffredini, CEO of Axiom Space, said in a press release.
For his part, Prada Marketing Director, Lorenzo Bertelli, added: “Prada’s ongoing progressive spirit for humanity has expanded to include its desire for adventure and to face challenges. New Horizons: Space. “It is a true celebration of the power of human creativity and innovation to advance civilization.”
What will Prada bring?
Prada is much more than just fashion. Drawing on Prada’s decades of experience and design expertise (dating back to the 1990s, when Luna Rossa was competing for the America’s Cup), Subsequent spacesuits seek to provide greater flexibility and greater protection To withstand the harsh environment and specialized tools to take advantage of scientific opportunities. This is where Prada experts will work with Axiom Space to bring this combination of benefits and comfort to the astronauts.
According to Prada Group Marketing Director, Lorenzo Bertelli, the partnership with Axiom Space Demonstrates Prada’s commitment to innovation and exploration. Therefore, Axiom will help work on the outer layer of its spacesuit, which should protect the suit’s inner layers from the space environment, including lunar dust, without impeding its movement. “When it comes to the design aspect of this piece, it makes a lot of sense because Prada has a lot of experience with design and look,” Suffredini said.
The development of next-generation spacesuits is an important milestone in the development of space exploration and understanding of the Moon, the Solar System and beyond. It will be a novelty for astronautsBecause the last planetary spacesuits that could walk on the moon were designed for Apollo astronauts More than 50 years ago.
The Artemis 3 mission will be NASA’s first manned mission to the Moon since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. He will also be the first to put a woman on the moon. The first Artemis astronaut mission, Artemis 2, is scheduled to launch late next year. This mission will take a crew of astronauts back and forth around the moon. A year later, in 2025, NASA hopes to launch Artemis III, the first return mission to the lunar surface since Apollo 17 in 1972.
This suit is being developed for NASA under contract $228.5 million Awarded in September 2022 as part of the Extravehicular Exploration Services program, NASA will acquire spacesuits for the Artemis and International Space Station missions.
References
- Axiom Space and Prada.
- Pauly, A., and Byers, M. (2020). US policy jeopardizes the safe development of space. Science, 370, 174 – 175. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abd3402.
- Liuzzo, L., Pope, A., and Halikas, J. (2022). A statistical study of the Moon’s magnetic tail plasma environment. Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics, 127. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JA030260.
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