Cape Canaveral, Fla. — Astronauts walking on the moon will have sleeker, more flexible spacesuits that come in different sizes when they step on the lunar surface later this decade.
Exactly what it looks like has been kept under wraps. The company that designed the next-generation spacesuits, Axiom Space, said Wednesday that it plans to acquire new versions for training purposes for NASA later this summer.
Moon suits will be white as they were during NASA’s Apollo program more than half a century ago, according to the company. This is so they can reflect heat and keep future lunar walks cool.
The suits will provide more flexibility and more protection from the moon’s harsh environment, and will be available in a wider range of sizes, according to the Houston-based company.
NASA has awarded Axiom Space a $228.5 million contract to provide clothing for the first moon landing in more than 50 years. The space agency aims in late 2025 at the earliest to land two astronauts on the south pole of the moon.
At Wednesday’s event in Houston, an Axiom employee modeled a dark spacesuit, doing squats and twisting at the waist to show off his flexibility. The company said that the final version will be different, including the color.
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