H umans evolved to perfectly suit the conditions on Earth. To venture out of the atmosphere, we need to artificially create these conditions. With durable and reliable materials and the most up-to-date technology and engineering, spacesuits surround the body with a bubble of air at the same pressure as that felt on our planet. Oxygen is stored and pumped to the head for breathing in environments that an exposed body would suffocate in.
The person recognised for inventing the concept of the spacesuit is Spanish scientist Emilio Herrera, who dreamed of reaching the stratosphere, though his missions were in the form of a hot-air balloon ride into a less hostile environment than today’s space missions, Herrera created a suit that provided him oxygen and protected his body from cold temperatures and pressure changes. This was the first version of the spacesuit, which achieves control of the same three elements. His invention is what inspired NASA’s first spacesuit, developed around 30 years later.
There are a range of successful spacesuits that are worn at various stages of a mission – from the intravehicular activity (IVA) type, designed just for the journey to and from space, to the robust extravehicular activity (EVA) suits that need to remain unfaltering when exposed to extreme temperatures, pressures and other unpredictable spacewalking hazards.