This is How Astronauts Put on Their Space Suits

We’ve all seen NASA astronauts out on spacewalks in their iconic white suits, but how do they get those things on and what’s underneath them? The team from YouTube Channel Tested had the same questions and so headed down to NASA's Neutral Buoyancy Lab in Houston Texas, to get all the information. 

The first thing you need to put on if you are preparing for a spacewalk is a diaper. Sounds surprising, but you might be outside for up to six hours and when natures calls, you need to answer. 

Next up are standard cotton long johns and a long sleeved t-shirt that wicks away body sweat and protects your body from the next layer. On next is the liquid cold ventilation garment. 

It’s a stretchy jumpsuit with tubes running through it, inside of which is water. By varying the flow rate of the water, the body temperature of the astronaut can be regulated. 

At this stage, it’s time to put on the ‘snoopy cap’ or communications cap on your head. The cap has a radio built into it that allows communication with both the space station and Earth. 

That completes the base layer of the suit. Next up is the suit itself called the Extravehicular Mobility Unit or EMU. First up is the ‘lower torso assembly’ this looks like a big pair of pants with the shoes built in. 

As the astronauts would be in space when dressing, they would float over to the top part of their suit that is hanging on a wall, squat underneath it and basically float into the suit. Watch the rest of the educative video to find out all the nitty-gritty details of what the suit is made form and how long they last.

Via: Tested