Whenever we mention astronauts, the image in our mind will be a person wearing a bloated spacesuit; Now scientists are trying to change this image through experiments. Maybe in the near future, the astronauts we see on TV will wear a light and high-tech protective suit similar to tights, and this spacesuit can change color according to the surrounding environment.

MIT researchers are developing a "biological clothing system". This kind of clothing similar to "second skin" will be sprayed with a coating that can be decomposed by organic organisms. This coating can protect astronauts in dusty planetary environments. Moreover, in this so-called "second skin", artificial muscle fibers driven by electricity can be implanted to enhance human strength and endurance.

In addition, communication equipment, biosensors, computers and even climbing tools for extravehicular activities such as spacewalking can be built into the "biological clothing system".

The researchers of the project pointed out that we didn't go to the moon and Mars to stay in the habitat, but to carry out extravehicular activities was our main purpose. We need to slim down the spacesuit and make it look like the second skin on the human body, so that astronauts can move freely.

This research involves many fields, aiming at calibrating the performance of astronauts, looking for improved methods of current spacesuit design, and seeking novel ideas for a new generation of spacesuits. This project is funded by the Institute of Advanced Concepts of NASA.

The "biological clothing system" will consist of a tight suit and a pressurized helmet. The ongoing research aims to understand, simulate and predict what may happen when astronauts wear this spacesuit for all simple and complex sports.

The astronaut put on an elastic "biological suit" customized according to his body shape, and then put on a "hard shell" vest; The vest is equipped with a portable life support system to provide gas back pressure for the body. Then air pressure can freely flow into the helmet and enter the gloves and boots through the trachea placed in the "biological suit".

Researchers believe that today's bloated spacesuits have great restrictions on astronauts' activities, and weight and quality are also limiting factors. Although these restrictions are not a big obstacle in the small gravity environment, flexibility and small mass are extremely important for advanced spacesuits used for lunar and Mars exploration. The key to transforming the research results into practical spacesuits lies in some technological progress; In the past few years, intelligent materials such as open-cell foam, memory alloy and electronic knitting technology needed to make "biological clothing system" have developed rapidly.

Scientists have begun to study a unique modeling technology, such as using 3D laser to scan the human body, and then using mathematical modeling and structural skills to calculate the pressure of various parts of the human body. The "biological clothing system" is light, easy to wear and take off, and can also be customized according to the astronaut's body shape. Laser scanning and electronic knitting technology make this possible.

In addition, the Institute of Advanced Concepts also funded an ongoing project called "Chameleon suit". As reflected in the name of the project, the project aims to develop a spacesuit that can change color according to the environment and the temperature requirements of astronauts.

The ultimate goal of "biological clothing system" scientists is to make astronauts and spacesuits interact like humans and plants on earth: carbon dioxide and water vapor exhaled by astronauts can be converted into breathable oxygen again in spacesuits. I believe that in the near future, astronauts will leave the impression that they are smart and capable in tights.