New, Innovative SkinSuit May Help Astronauts on Long-Term Spaceflight to Mars

First Posted: Oct 20, 2015 10:59 AM EDT

Astronauts are testing out an innovative "skin suit" that's designed to reduce the debilitating physical effects of spaceflight. Called the SkinSuit, the new full body suit could help astronauts during long spaceflight missions.

Denmark's first astronaut, Andreas Mogensen, spent 10 days in the International Space Station last month and pulled on the SkinSuit to test its effectiveness in weightless conditions. The suit itself is inspired by a striking bodysuit worn by Cathy Freeman, Australian gold medallist, in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

The suit is skin-tight and made of bi-directional elastics. It was designed to mimic the impact of gravity on the body in order to reduce the debilitating physical effects that space flights have on astronauts' bodies.

Within the weightless conditions of space, astronauts can lose up to 2 percent bone mass per month. Their spines can also stretch by up to 7 centimeters, with most suffering mild to debilitating pain. Following flight, astronauts have four times the risk of herniated discs as the general population.

"Given the impact of atrophy in space, I wondered if a suit like the one worn by Freeman could fool the body into thinking it was on the ground rather than in space, and therefore stay healthy," said James Waldie, aerospace engineer who designed the suit, in a news release. "We believe if we can reduce spinal elongation in space, we can reduce the stress on the intervertebral discs. This should help with pain in-flight, and the chances of slipped discs post-flight."

The results of the SkinSuit have yet to be released. However, it does present an important part of long-term space travel plans. Feats of engineering like this will be important for astronauts traveling to Mars and other distant planets so that they stay healthy.

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Tagsspace, international space station, ISS, Astronaut, Astronauts, Mars, spaceflight, Health