Space Suit Materials for Use in Cryogenic Cold

One of the greatest challenges to conducting exploration and long-duration missions on the Moon or Mars is the development of space suit materials that can operate in these austere environments, including the Artemis target of Permanently Shaded Regions (PSRs) of the Moon's south pole. Operating in extreme cold without fracture is particularly challenging for polymeric materials, especially when experiencing strain from flexing. Several crosscutting materials solutions will be advanced in this program to establish materials solutions that meet the required performance metrics for application in boot outsoles, glove TMG palm pads and knee/elbow pads. Processing techniques for converting these materials into components will be studied and verified through component fabrication and test. The material solutions are able to support high strain without cracking in extreme cold, survive thermal shock and abrasion, resist puncture, and are readily adaptable to space suit component configurations and manufacturing technologies at commercial space suit manufacturing companies. Component design and manufacturing modifications will also be studied to reduce mass, improve penetration resistance, and improve space suit mobility. Testing will be conducted at the materials level, sub-component level, and component level to verify performance to requirements. Materials solutions will be applicable to Mars space suits, lunar space suits, and other flexible structure technologies intended for use in extreme cold.