For the first time in over half a century, NASA astronauts are preparing to journey back to the moon. Ahead of the highly anticipated Artemis lunar fly-around mission, engineers are working tirelessly to ensure the crew is equipped with the most advanced protective gear in history.
At the heart of this development is Dustin Gohmert, the lead engineer overseeing spacesuit design at the Orion Crew Survival Systems Lab, located within the Johnson Space Center. Under his guidance, the team has spent years meticulously crafting the iconic orange Orion spacesuits.
These vital garments are engineered to keep astronauts safe during the intense phases of launch and reentry, while also serving as a critical lifeline in the event of an in-flight emergency. Although the new suits share a visual lineage with previous generations of space apparel, their underlying capabilities are vastly superior.
According to Gohmert, the internal pressures the crew will endure and the extended duration they can safely remain sealed inside the suits represent a massive leap forward in aerospace engineering. He noted that these specific performance metrics are "unprecedented from what we've tried before."
Beyond the upcoming Artemis missions, this state-of-the-art gear is laying the groundwork for even deeper space exploration. NASA has confirmed that the underlying technology driving the Orion suits is ultimately intended to protect astronauts on future transit missions to Mars.