NASA partnered with Axiom Space to unveil the spacesuits that astronauts will one day wear when humanity establishes a longtime presence on the moon.
The spacesuits are designed for NASA’s Artemis III mission, which is scheduled to land humans near the moon’s south pole some time in 2025.
The lunar surface is an unforgiving place, with temperatures reaching 130 degrees during sunlit periods near the south pole. In other deep craters that are perpetually dark, temperatures can dive as low as -334 degrees.
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Image 1 of 2The new spacesuit is carried out during the Axiom Space Artemis III Lunar Spacesuit event at Space Center Houston in Houston, Texas, on March 15, 2023. (MARK FELIX/AFP /AFP via Getty Images)
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Image 2 of 2(MARK FELIX/AFP /AFP via Getty Images)
The new spacesuit debuted by Axiom on Wednesday will allow humans not only to walk on the moon, but also to live and work there.
“Axiom Space’s Artemis III spacesuit will be ready to meet the complex challenges of the lunar south pole and help grow our understanding of the Moon in order to enable a long-term presence there,” Axiom Space CEO Michael Suffredini said Wednesday.
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The sleek black outer layer sporting Axiom’s logo is just a cover to protect the suit’s proprietary design. The actual suits that astronauts will wear on the moon need to be white to reflect heat instead of absorb it.
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Image 1 of 2Chief Engineer Jim Stein goes to hug to NASAs Lara Kearney while wearing the new spacesuit during the Axiom Space Artemis III Lunar Spacesuit event at Space Center Houston in Houston, Texas, on March 15, 2023. (MARK FELIX/AFP /AFP via Getty Images)
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Image 2 of 2(MARK FELIX/AFP /AFP via Getty Images)
NASA is still reviewing data from its uncrewed Artemis I test flight last year, which sent the Orion spacecraft around the moon before successfully returning to Earth in December.
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Artemis II, which will be the first crewed mission to orbit the moon, is set to launch in late 2024. The crewed mission that will land on the moon, Artemis III, is scheduled for 2025.