NASA chooses manufacturers of new lunar spacesuits

NASA has picked Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace to develop future spacesuits. As part of the Artemis program, they'll be utilized for spacewalks from the International Space Station and lunar landings.

Initially, NASA planned to create new spacesuits on its own. However, the organization's administration favored a model similar to that of the CAST (Crew Space Transportation) program. Boeing and SpaceX have been awarded contracts to create new manned spacecraft that will transport humans into orbit as part of the program's framework.

The xEVAS (Exploration Extravehicular Activity Services) program was developed as a result of this. The aerospace administration has awarded Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace contracts with a hard set price within its framework. They have a total value of USD 3.5 billion and are planned to last until 2034.

Spacesuits will be designed, developed, qualified, certified, and manufactured by private enterprises, with NASA setting technological criteria and safety standards. The spacesuits will be leased by NASA and will be owned by Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace. The first spacesuits should be completed in time for the Artemis III mission, which is set to launch in 2025.

Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace have just released a few broad images and have not revealed any technical specifics about their projects to the public. Axiom Space said in a statement that it has a number of clients who are willing to go on a spacewalk with them. Collins Aerospace, on the other hand, concentrated on utilizing knowledge gathered during the creation of Apollo-era spacesuits as well as modern American spacesuits now in use on the International Space Station.

Private businesses such as Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace aren't the only ones developing spacesuits for extravehicular activities. A comparable idea is being worked on by SpaceX. The first-ever private spacewalk will take conducted as part of the Polaris Dawn mission at the end of the year, putting it to the test in "battle" circumstances.