SpaceX Unveils New Spacesuits for Historic Private Astronaut Spacewalk

SpaceX is preparing to launch a private crew of astronauts on a five day journey through Earth orbit, and they will be the first to try on the company’s latest spacesuit design during a first-of-its-kind spacewalk.

In an update shared on May 4, SpaceX revealed the design of its long-awaited extravehicular activity (EVA) suit. The new spacesuits will be worn by the Polaris Dawn crew during a series of private astronaut missions backed by billionaire Jared Isaacman. The first of the program’s three missions is scheduled to launch no earlier than this summer.

The five-day mission will launch SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft into an elliptical orbit around Earth, from where the private astronauts will collect data and conduct various research and experiments. One of the main highlights of the upcoming mission is the plan to perform the first ever commercial astronaut spacewalk, which will also be the first to occur from the Dragon spacecraft.

Reports suggest that SpaceX may have struggled during the design process of the new EVA suits. Polaris Dawn was originally scheduled to launch in the fourth quarter of 2022, but has suffered numerous delays. The delays were likely due in large part to the design of the new spacesuits; sources told SpaceNews in February that SpaceX had significantly underestimated the amount of work needed to convert its pressurized suit design to an EVA suit.

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