Space Suit Design Competition

Future missions will bring Europeans to the surface of the Moon and eventually to Mars and possibly beyond. Once they get there, our astronauts aren't going to spend all their time indoors. As soon as they exit their relatively safe bases to explore these new destinations, they will need protection from the extreme environments they encounter. Enter: the extra-vehicular activity (EVA) suit!

The EVA suit is one of the most emblematic features of human space exploration and acts like a mini spaceship designed to protect our astronauts from these harsh conditions. Building a functioning EVA suit is an extremely complicated endeavour and people around the world are coming together to think about the best technical way to build the future EVA suits. But what about the appearance? How can we make an EVA suit instantly recognisable as a European suit for our ESA astronauts? We want your ideas!

SPACE SUIT CRASH COURSE

A space suit is designed to enable humans to survive in the harsh environment of space. In particular, astronauts need an EVA suit for activities outside the spacecraft, for example spacewalks or exploring lunar and planetary surfaces. An EVA suit is in essence a miniature spaceship; it must provide all the same life support tools - air and water - that a spacecraft does while allowing our astronauts to safely explore these new destinations. Not only must the space suit provide life support, but it must also resist harsh conditions such as extreme temperatures, damaging radiation, high-speed debris and clogging dust.

The destinations we plan to go to are nothing like Earth. We plan to return to the Moon by 2030. Due to its rotation, the Moon has nights lasting as long as 14 Earth days, exposing astronauts to temperatures as low as -170°C degrees in the middle of the night. Also, the Moon has no magnetic field nor atmosphere; there is no air to breathe and astronauts have no protection from harsh cosmic radiation. The lunar surface is covered in sharp grey dust called regolith; the lack of wind means there is no erosion to soften the edges, therefore the dust is razor-sharp. Walking on the Moon's surface is like walking on broken glass...

"I think probably one of the most aggravating, restricting facets of lunar surface exploration is the dust and its adherence to everything no matter what kind of material, whether it be skin, suit material, metal, no matter what it be and its restrictive friction-like action to everything it gets on". Pete Conrad, Apollo 12 Commander. Image from NASA of Pete Conrad's dust-covered glove.

WHY ARE WE DOING THIS

The conditions that our astronauts will face while exploring these future destinations are very challenging; as you can see, the EVA suit is a crucial part of withstanding these conditions for the exploration process. Building a functioning EVA suit is a complex and expensive process; so while we let our experts deal with the complicated technical details, join us in envisioning how the future European EVA suit should look like!

Your design could be used by ESA in exhibitions and by the film industry, to educate and inspire people about space exploration. 

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR

We are looking for an EVA suit design presented in A3 format, with an accompanying text of up to 400 words explaining how your design represents European identity. The design can be digital or a scanned drawing. The submission should include a frontal, side, and back view of the suit, as seen below:

Tip: Consider some "space suit must-haves" in the image below. You do not have to worry about detailed technical aspects of the space suit design, but try to strike a balance between an inspiring visual design and something which is technically feasible in the next few decades!

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

You have until 28th February 2023 to submit a design. Once you have submitted your proposal, it will be reviewed by our jury panel composed of design & EVA experts, including an astronaut trainer! Up to 5 of the best proposals will be selected and those who submitted them will be invited to an ESA centre later in the year (please refer to the EVA Competition Terms and Conditions for more information)!

Remember, this competition places the emphasis on the look of the space suit rather than the technical elements - anyone with an interest in space and design can participate! We look forward to seeing your ideas!