The astronaut fashion designers are also thinking of art in his work. "Latest design, more fashionable. Very similar to the suit worn character of Buzz Lightyear," said Amy Ross, one of the engineers from NASA which have responsible for the development of Z-1 spacesuit. Buzz Lightyear is an astronaut character in the Toy Story, animated film.
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| This new spacesuit prototype from NASA might reinvent the ways astronauts experience space. (Picture from: http://www.livescience.com/) |
The latest prototype of NASA's spacesuit, called Z-1 was recently completed test. A number of technologies installed in the suits that have been improved in detail. This is the first massively overhaul against NASA astronaut outfit since 1998.
The Z-1 spacesuit with the basic white color with lime green accents on some parts. The material is strong and highly flexible designed primarily to facilitate astronaut when maneuvering in a zero gravity in space. Astronaut will also be more nimble walk on the surface of a planet or asteroid.
What distinguishes between the Z-1 and Buzz costumes of course the back. If Buzz's complete spacesuit with a pair of wings to fly, not so with NASA's suits. Z-1 does not need wings because astronauts would be able to float in space.
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| The Z-1 spacesuit will potentially be used to explore different planets. (Picture from: http://www.space.com/) |
NASA will complete Z-1 suit with a support backpack that mounted on the back. Backpacks named PLSS 2.0 will replace the old backpack, which is sensitive to contamination and waste of oxygen, making the astronauts difficult to walk away. "Backpacks are the new more efficient and less vulnerable contamination," said Ross on Friday, December 21, 2012.
Ross said the Z-1 prototype is very flexible, but also a bit heavier. The older model of astronaut outfit weighs about 45 kilos, while the Z-1 suit has a weight of 72 kilograms. In fact, in Mars (planet with gravity-owned one-third of Earth's) that weight difference it could make a significant difference.
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| The Z-1 will allow for more maneuverability during the aforementioned walks. (Picture from: http://geek-news.mtv.com/) |
NASA aimed to design the Z-1 around the most challenging aspects of any mission astronauts might be faced with. If an astronaut is sent to an asteroid or Mars, the engineers wanted to be sure that the spacewalker is protected from background radiation while still able to move around the planet's surface.
But that doesn't mean that developers won't want to use this research to specialize the suit eventually. By understanding exactly what a suit should protect against in certain environments and then designing the prototype around those, Ross said, NASA should have the capability to produce a suit specifically tailored for any mission. According to Ross, the Z-1 suits should be ready to go on its first mission about 2015. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | LIVESCIENCE | SPACE | MAHARDIKA SATRIA HADI | KORAN TEMPO 4094]
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