NASA has signed a USD 97 million contract with Collins Aerospace. It stipulates the development of a new generation of spacesuits designed for the ISS crew.
Currently, American astronauts use EMU (Extravehicular Mobility Unit) spacesuits for spacewalks, which were developed back in the 1970s. In the 1990s, they underwent modernization in order to use them on the ISS. NASA believes that by now these spacesuits are already outdated and the ISS crew needs a “new one”.
Under the terms of the contract, Collins Aerospace will have to provide a ground-testable version of the new spacesuit by January 2024. The agreement also provides for the possibility of its use for a demonstration exit outside the ISS in 2026.
Collins Aerospace has not yet disclosed the technical details of its spacesuits. It is only reported that they will be lighter, and will provide astronauts with greater mobility than EMU.
Recall that in September 2022, NASA also issued a USD 228 million contract for the production of spacesuits for the Artemis program. It was received by Axiom Space.
According to https://spacenews.com
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