New Spacesuits Designed By Boeing And SpaceX

NASA is going to send astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) in private spacecrafts designed and operated by SpaceX and Boeing. After ending its Space Shuttle program on 2011, NASA has been using Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft to send astronauts to ISS. The private space companies like SpaceX and Boeing are ready to launch humans in to the space now. They are offering cheaper service than Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft. Thus, NASA has booked Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX’s Dragon spacecrafts for transporting astronauts to ISS. The SpaceX Dragon is the first commercial spacecraft to transport cargo to ISS.

(Space suits made by Boeing and SpaceX. Photos Courtesy: Boeing and SpaceX)

NASA has already announced that eight NASA astronauts and one Boeing astronaut will be launched to space under ‘NASA’s Commercial Crew Program’. Five astronauts will fly aboard in both Boeing and SpaceX spacecrafts for test missions. After the test missions, four astronauts will fly to ISS in CST-100 Starliner and in Dragon. These astronauts are not only going to travel in the private spacecrafts, they are also going to wear new spacesuits designed by Boeing and SpaceX. These spacesuits are designed to wear inside the spacecrafts only. They will wear usual bulky spacesuits for spacewalks. 

(Boeing's CST Starliner and SpaceX's Dragon spacecrafts - Wikipedia)

Boeing’s ‘Boeing Blue’ spacesuit is light weight and comfortable, which help astronauts to move easily. It is 40 percent lighter than the traditional spacesuits. The layers in the suit are designed to keep the astronauts cooler. NASA’s spacesuits have a neck ring to attach the heavy helmet. Boeing Blue has a light weight helmet like a hood in sweatshirt. The helmet has polycarbonate visor. The gloves of the suit have touchscreen capability, which help astronauts to interact with the tablets and other touchscreens. The Communication Cap Assembly with headset beneath the helmet help astronauts to communicate with themselves and with ground control. 

SpaceX’s founder Elon Musk shared a photo of their spacesuit last year. It is a slim fit, black and white suit. It is more modern with minimal design than the Boeing Blue. It slightly resembles the spacesuits from the movie Interstellar. There are no technical details available about this spacesuit.