Why NASA Astronauts Will Wear Prada-Designed Garments on Moon Missions

In an unusual but groundbreaking collaboration, Italian luxury fashion house Prada and Houston-based space company Axiom Space have unveiled a specialised garment that astronauts will wear beneath their lunar spacesuits during future NASA Moon missions.

The newly revealed "Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment" (LCVG) will form a critical component of the next-generation spacesuit system planned for NASA's Artemis III and Artemis IV missions. While Prada is best known for luxury fashion, its expertise in advanced materials and garment design has now found an unexpected application in human spaceflight.

The development highlights how future space exploration is increasingly drawing expertise from industries far beyond traditional aerospace engineering.

What Is the Prada-Designed Garment?

The garment is not the outer spacesuit visible to the public but rather a highly technical inner layer worn directly against an astronaut's body.

Known as the Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment (LCVG), it is designed to regulate body temperature and manage airflow inside the spacesuit during lunar missions.

The LCVG will be used inside the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU), the next-generation spacesuit being developed for NASA's Artemis programme.

Because astronauts can spend up to eight hours conducting physically demanding activities on the Moon's surface, controlling body temperature is essential for both comfort and safety.

Why Do Astronauts Need a Water-Cooled Garment?

Spacewalks are physically intense. As astronauts move, lift equipment and conduct scientific experiments, their bodies generate significant amounts of heat.

On Earth, the human body cools itself through sweat and air circulation. In space and on the Moon, however, those natural cooling mechanisms are ineffective because of the vacuum environment and extreme temperatures.

To solve this problem, the LCVG contains a complex network of tubes that circulate cold water around the astronaut's body.

According to Axiom Space, the system directs chilled water across major muscle groups, absorbing excess body heat and carrying it away before it can become dangerous.

The technology helps maintain a stable body temperature throughout long-duration lunar operations.

What Makes This New Design Different?

The most significant innovation is the addition of a fully redundant cooling circuit.

This means the garment contains a backup cooling system that can automatically take over if the primary cooling loop fails.

The redundancy is particularly important because overheating during a lunar spacewalk could quickly become life-threatening.

The backup system provides an additional layer of protection for astronauts operating in the harsh and unforgiving environment of the Moon's surface.

According to Axiom Space, this is the first time such a fully redundant cooling system has been incorporated into this type of garment.

How Does the Garment Help Astronauts Breathe?

The LCVG does more than regulate temperature.

It also plays a crucial role in ventilation and air circulation inside the spacesuit.

A separate network of tubes delivers fresh oxygen across the astronaut's face, helping remove exhaled carbon dioxide before it accumulates.

The carbon dioxide is then sent back to the spacesuit's life-support system, where it is removed and the oxygen is recycled.

This continuous airflow helps maintain a breathable environment throughout a spacewalk.

Why Did Prada Become Involved in a Space Project?

Although Prada is primarily associated with luxury fashion, the company has extensive experience in advanced textiles, precision manufacturing and high-performance materials.

The collaboration with Axiom Space allowed the fashion house to apply those skills to a highly technical aerospace challenge.

Jonathan Cirtain, CEO and President of Axiom Space, highlighted the importance of combining expertise from different industries.

"The future of space exploration will not be built by any one entity alone, and our partnership with Prada is proof of that. By bringing together the best in both aerospace engineering as well as luxury craftsmanship and advanced product development, we have developed a garment that neither company could have created independently, and that is exactly the kind of cross-industry thinking that will define the next era of human spaceflight."

The partnership reflects a growing trend in the space industry, where collaborations increasingly involve companies from sectors such as fashion, technology and consumer products.

What Contribution Did Prada Make?

According to Prada, the company played a key role in designing the garment's structure, materials and overall comfort.

Lorenzo Bertelli, Prada Group Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Sustainability, emphasized the company's involvement in developing the new system.

"The LCVG collaboration draws on Prada's expertise in design, patternmaking, and advanced materials, resulting in a next-generation garment developed through advanced 3D modelling techniques that maintain cooling and ventilation while enhancing comfort during up to eight-hour spacewalks," Prada said in a statement.

The focus was not only on functionality but also on ensuring astronauts can move comfortably while performing demanding tasks on the lunar surface.

Why Is the LCVG So Important for Astronaut Safety?

The garment serves as one of the most important life-support components within the spacesuit.

Without effective cooling and ventilation, astronauts could face overheating, dehydration, fatigue and impaired performance during missions.

Russell Ralston, Axiom Space Senior Vice President of Spacecraft Development, stressed the garment's critical role.

"Every minute astronauts spend outside their vehicle, the LCVG is working to keep them safe."

"It manages their thermal environment, supports their breathing, and does it all while they're pushing their bodies to the limit. The work we have done with Prada has taken that capability to a level we could not have achieved alone."

His comments underscore how essential the inner garment is to the overall safety of future Moon missions.

How Does This Fit Into NASA's Artemis Programme?

NASA's Artemis programme aims to return humans to the Moon for the first time since the Apollo era.

The Artemis III mission, currently targeted for 2026, is expected to land astronauts near the Moon's South Pole, a region believed to contain valuable water-ice deposits and other scientific resources.

The Prada-designed LCVG will form part of the broader AxEMU spacesuit system astronauts will use during these missions.

Its unveiling follows the public debut of the AxEMU outer spacesuit layer at the International Astronautical Congress in Milan in 2024.

What Does This Collaboration Mean for the Future of Space Exploration?

The partnership between Prada and Axiom Space demonstrates how future space missions may increasingly depend on expertise from a wide range of industries.

As lunar exploration evolves and missions become longer and more complex, innovations in materials science, garment design and human performance will be just as important as rockets and spacecraft.

The Prada-designed cooling garment illustrates how unconventional collaborations can help solve some of the most demanding challenges of human spaceflight, potentially shaping the next generation of exploration beyond Earth.

(With inputs from ANI)