It happened! NASA finally realized SpaceX spacesuit is better than its own...save NASA's billion!

Close your eyes and picture the first things that come to mind when I say space suit. Bulky and not very pleasant to the eyes, right? But what if I told you that in the future, outer space will become a catwalk where models are astronauts wearing sleek suits like superheroes straight out of sci-fi. In fact, Musk championed this idea well before 2015 and even revealed a unique design. Starman, which is an intravehicular activity suit that is out of this world, literally. The suit is now in outer space floating around in a Tesla Roadster. Even then, SpaceX is now developing the next iteration for astronauts boarding their Crew Dragon capsule and has been since August 10th of 2021. NASA's got nothing on this suit. But what makes this suit more advanced than the regular suits that we're more accustomed to? Let's find out how SpaceX's suit design will shock scientists over at NASA in today's episode of Great SpaceX. First of all, we need to understand what an IVA suit really is. The intravehicular activity suit is not the sort of space suit used outside of a vehicle or spacecraft. This is opposed to the extravehicular activity suit, or EVA for short, that we've seen astronauts wear during the time they float in outer space. For context, the IVA suit is worn by astronauts during launch and landing, as well as during rendezvous and docking procedures. It'll also keep the astronauts pressurized in the event of a catastrophic failure such as depressurization on the return to Earth. This actually happened for the Soyuz 11 mission in 1971, where the crew suffocated within a minute because of the lack of oxygen and the means to deliver it. Despite being safe and reliable, there are some obvious setbacks to traditional IVA suits. Take for example the Advanced Crew Escape Suit, or ACES, that was used in the space shuttle program from 1994 to 2011, which makes space shuttle crews look like mobile pumpkins. Just because of the sheer shape and size, any and all types of movement must be difficult for people who have to wear it. Just imagine, you're inside the pumpkin suit, which then gets inflated and turns you into a balloon. This adds more difficulty in just trying to bend your joints, and the more you try, the more air in that joint will be compressed, creating a lot of resistance for you. The limitations in movement are not only due to the shape of the suit, but also because of the weight. When equipped with full hardware and system, the ACE suit weighs up to 92 pounds, or 42 kilograms, like that of its predecessor, the Launch Entry Suit, or the LES. Additionally, it takes a lot of effort to even wear the thing, since the helmet, gloves, and headset were all attached separately using bulky metal rings, meaning that the astronauts always needed outside assistance. Although ACE suits were highly valued in its era for its capability of protecting NASA's crews, it came at a price. Each suit cost around $88,000 in 1998, which in today's money is around $165,035 and some change, which is nothing to scoff at. Being aware of all these complications, SpaceX began developing its first spacesuit, Starman, all the way back in 2015. For Elon Musk, it's all about aesthetics. He wants to honor astronauts as superheroes, saving the world, so SpaceX's suit design looks as sleek as the outfit of Batman, The Avengers, or any hero or heroine that you can think of. I personally like Spider-Man. Which is your favorite hero? Let me know in the comments down below. In any case, it explains the reason why Jose Fernandez is a person catching Elon's eye, not any scientist or engineer. The physical joints of the human body in places like the shoulders, knees, elbows, and even your fingers will not hit any obstacle in movement while wearing the suit, which gives astronauts a much greater range of mobility and control in case of being pressurized. It's in stark contrast with the pumpkin suit. SpaceX's suit is completely based on each individual's size to fit the shape of each crew member. Gone are the days of the one size fits all suit. The joints are likely to be smaller and line up perfectly with the joints of each person. Last but not least, the best part is no part, which is also Musk's principle, which is also Musk's mantra for the Raptor engines update, that is now applied to developing spacesuits. The exterior valves and hoses that are usual on this type of pressure suit are eliminated significantly without adversely affecting the Starman suit's performance. Pull it off. The answer is automation and integration. The astronauts get access to the Dragon's communications and avionics info via a system called the Suit Seat System. The main part of the system is an umbilical cable connecting the chair and a port on the thigh of the suit. It also allows nitrogen to flow into the suit's air duct, chilling the temperature inside. Aside from the usual functions that we've seen in a helmet, SpaceX added a new feature, the pressure and temperature sensors that feed the spacecraft with information allowing it to automate the process. That basically means that if the astronauts want to adjust their suit pressure, they won't need to do it manually, thus removing the bulky valves on the outside of the suit. To prevent oxygen shortage inside the suit, SpaceX uses a custom air mixture with a high percentage of oxygen varied by the onboard life support system. This is actually much better than breathing pure oxygen for a few hours. And instead of being equipped with multiple valves and pipes on the outside to control the suit pressure and temperature, SpaceX combines all of these down into just one single port. This multifunctional port embraces a hole for air circulation, a power and communications connector, and a port to quickly inflate the suit during an emergency. Additionally, unlike the Space Shuttle or any other spacecraft's suit, for SpaceX's, the gloves and helmets are already attached and the headset is integrated into the helmet. That means, suiting up by yourself has never been easier. The minimalistic design helps to significantly decrease the IVA suit's total mass so it weighs only 10 kilograms, which is around a quarter of what the Space Shuttle's old school suit weighed. And the cost? Well that's still a mystery, but with a company that's well known for simple and low-cost products, it's safe to say that the suit's cost will not be expensive. Revealed back in September of 2017, SpaceX's Starman, with creative design and optimal function, received an enthusiastic welcome from the public. But we would be doing a disservice here if we did not review the testimonies of astronauts who actually wore the suit. In May of 2020, two astronauts, Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, took part in the Dragon's first crewed test flight to the International Space Station. The pair also made the journey kitted out in matching SpaceX spacesuits and were nonetheless full of praise for their groovy new high-tech thread. We gave the suit a five-star rating, said Behnken. Bob Behnken said. They're much easier to get in and out of in zero-g, added Hurley. This IVA's new design is magnificent, but what really shocked SpaceX fans and even NASA scientists is that Elon Musk is going to put the new suit in the new frontier. We're of course talking about the SpaceX-designed Extravehicular Activity spacesuits, upgraded from the current intravehicular suit, that'll be used for the Polaris Dawn. Polaris Dawn is a planned private human spaceflight mission operated by SpaceX on behalf of Shift 4 Payments CEO Jared Isaacman. He funded and flew on the Inspiration4 Crew Dragon mission in September 2021. Starting in 2024, this Dragon mission will push both Falcon 9 and Dragon to their final frontier, flying higher than any Dragon mission to date and endeavoring to reach the highest Earth orbit ever flown. The place mentioned here is the Van Allen radiation belt made of trapped particle radiation, predominantly protons and electrons. Talking about this adventure, Isaacman shared, This program has been purposefully designed to advance long-duration human spaceflight capabilities and guide us toward the ultimate goal of facilitating Mars exploration. The flight will include an extravehicular activity, or spacewalk. It's a great occasion for SpaceX fans to witness SpaceX's new upgrade, the EVA suit, at an altitude of 700 kilometers from Earth's surface. The development of this suit and the execution of the EVA will be important steps towards the scalable design for spacesuits for future long-duration missions, the Shift 4 Payments CEO said. Now, let's talk a little bit more about the EVA suit. According to Anna Menon, one of the four astronauts joining the program, the spacesuit this time will be a single suit used for both the launch itself and the spacewalk. Because the Dragon Crew capsule lacks an airlock, the entire crew will have to wear spacesuits during the spacewalk because the door to the capsule will be open to the vacuum, she said. So when looking at the program's poster, you can notice the similarity between SpaceX's IVA and EVA suits in design. The special points here are that the AEVA EVA will have a gold reflective visor for sunlight, an umbilical connector to a wire, and no backpack like portable life support. The lack of a life support system for extravehicular activity here is something strange. You need a life support system to survive in outer space since it is independent of a spacecraft's life support system. And we have seen it in the design of the Space Shuttle Extravehicular Mobility Suit, or EMU. Referring to this fact, SpaceX might want to reduce the suit's total mass and help astronauts go easily through the narrow door. And honestly, the hatch on the front door of the Dragon is actually too small for NASA's EMU. Sounds like the company has many great upgrades for the EVA suits to make it free of portable life support. Unfortunately, to date, the public has not had any opportunity to witness those changes and we still have to wait until nearly the maiden launch date under the program to find out the answer. So there you have it. What do you think about SpaceX's new designs for its suit? Let me know in the comments down below. And that's all folks. 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