The current white cover layer of the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU) spacesuit prototype. … [+]
This fashion collaboration is out of this world.
The Italian luxury fashion brand Prada recently announced its partnership with Texas-based commercial space firm Axiom Space to design spacesuits for the upcoming Artemis III mission to the Moon in 2025. Prada’s design and engineering team will work alongside the Axiom Space team through the design process.
The outfits are white with blue stripes and red accents.
This Artemis mission, planned for 2025, will also be the first to place a woman on the Moon. Artemis III is also the first flight to the Moon with crew in the craft since 1972’s Apollo 17.
Astronaut Christina Hammock Koch is slated to be the first woman to travel to the Moon in a flyby with Artemis II in 2024, but will not physically step onto the Moon. As of 2023, 12 men and no women have stepped foot onto the Moon.
“We are thrilled to partner with Prada on the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU) spacesuit,” said Michael Suffredini, CEO of Axiom Space, in a statement.
“Prada’s technical expertise with raw materials, manufacturing techniques, and innovative design concepts will bring advanced technologies instrumental in ensuring not only the comfort of astronauts on the lunar surface, but also the much-needed human factors considerations absent from legacy spacesuits,” he added.
The AxEMU spacesuits will allow astronauts to have “advanced capabilities” for space exploration, as well as to live and work on and around the Moon.
The Prada-designed Axiom Space spacesuits are not only stylish, but meant to have superior flexibility, greater protection to withstand the harsh space environment and specialized tools for space exploration. Though no details have been released as of yet, the Prada spacesuits will incorporate innovative technologies in its design to make this possible.
Prada is a luxury fashion house that was founded in Milan in 1913. It is known for its famed triangle logo, commitment to Italian craftsmanship and timeless black handbags.
The brand creates clothing, accessories and fragrances, and has over 600 stores across the world. Prada has previously partnered with Rem Koolhaas, Herzog & de Meuron, Damien Hirst, Nicolas Winding Refn and Wes Anderson, among others, for attire and campaigns.
Prada’s celebrity brand ambassadors include Maya Hawke, Letitia Wright and Enhyphen, among others.
