EVADevelopment🇺🇸
AxEMU
Designation: AxEMU (Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit)
The suit that will return humans to the Moon — the first lunar surface EVA suit since Apollo 17 in 1972, with Prada co-designing its outer materials.
About This Suit
The AxEMU (Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit) is the commercial suit contracted by NASA under the xEVAS (Exploration Extravehicular Activity Services) program to provide lunar surface EVA capability for Artemis III — the first crewed Moon landing since December 1972. Axiom Space, in partnership with Collins Aerospace (before Collins exited the program in June 2024), developed the suit incorporating technology from NASA's Z-2 and xEMU prototype programs. A notable collaboration with Italian fashion house Prada contributes outer shell materials optimized for lunar south pole extreme cold conditions. The suit features constant-volume elbow and knee joints allowing bending without pressure changes, a full hip/knee/ankle range enabling squatting and kneeling (impossible in Apollo suits), integrated HUD display, and built-in HD cameras. It fits the 5th–95th percentile of the U.S. population. Axiom is now the sole provider after Collins Aerospace withdrew in June 2024.
Key Features
- 1Rear-entry design (inherited from Krechet-94/Orlan philosophy) for lunar surface operations
- 2Constant-volume joints at elbows and knees — bending without pressure change reduces fatigue
- 3Full squat/kneel mobility at hips, knees, ankles — revolutionary vs. Apollo A7L/A7LB
- 4Integrated HUD displaying suit status and mission data in visor
- 5Prada-developed outer layer materials for lunar south pole extreme cold
- 6Fits 5th–95th percentile of U.S. population — broadest inclusion of any NASA EVA suit
Historic Missions
2027
Artemis III (targeted 2027)
First crewed Moon landing since Apollo 17 — first woman and first person of color on the lunar surface; will land near lunar south pole
Engineering & Research Highlights
- ◆Constant-volume joint research proved joints can maintain volume under pressure — eliminating the pre-breathe time issues of EMU's 4.3 psi
- ◆Prada collaboration brought aerospace-textile materials engineering from fashion into EVA suit development for thermal management at −200°C lunar poles
- ◆Wide fit range (5th–95th percentile) demonstrates that modern materials can accommodate all astronaut builds — not just the 'average' male build that NASA suits historically optimized for