Italian luxury group Prada and Houston-based startup Axiom Space on Wednesday presented the design of a spacesuit that will be used on NASA’s Artemis III mission to the Moon, scheduled for 2026.
In its external appearance, the spacesuit is not too far removed from what astronauts have worn in the past. It’s your usual bulky white suit, with added red piping and gray patches on the knees and elbows.
The new Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU), as the suit is known, was presented at the International Astronautical Congress in Milan. Its goal is to combine functionality and highly engineered aesthetics to cope with the difficult lunar conditions.
Astronauts will be able to carry out space walks for at least eight hours
Artemis III is planned to be the first lunar landing by an astronaut since Apollo 17 in 1972.
“Houston, we have a new spacesuit. “Axiom Space presents the flight design of its lunar spacesuit that NASA astronauts will wear during the Artemis III mission when they set foot on the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years,” NASA’s Artemis mission noted in a post on your X account.
The spacesuits have been manufactured to withstand extreme temperatures at the lunar south pole and withstand colder temperatures in permanently shadowed regions for at least two hours, both companies reported in a joint statement.
Astronauts will be able to spacewalk for at least eight hours.
The AxEMU has already undergone extensive testing, including underwater to simulate the lunar environment. According to the two companies, it is in the final phase of development.
“I am very proud of the result we showed today, which is only the first step of a long-term collaboration with Axiom Space,” said Lorenzo Bertelli, marketing director of Prada.
Matt Ondler, president of Axiom Space, said the design had been driven by combining the skills of workers from the two groups.
“Innovation really comes when we bring together diverse teams, diverse backgrounds, different educations, different skills,” Ondler said.
The thick red stripes are one of the symbols of the Prada brand.
As the space exploration and tourism sectors develop, luxury brands are exploring potential partnerships.
Last month, French fashion house Pierre Cardin unveiled a training suit for astronauts to be used at the European Space Agency’s center in Cologne.
The Hilton hotel group collaborates with Voyager Space in the design and development of suites for the crew of the Starlab commercial space station.
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