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Dainese Creates Two Space Suits for Mars Missions

Italian motorcycle protection gear manufacturer Dainese, arguably the biggest name in the industry, is taking its games beyond the final frontier. In collaboration with NASA and ESA (European Space Agency), Dainese created not one, but two space suits intended for use during the upcoming Mars missions.
Dainese space suits 11 photos
Photo: jalopnik.com
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Some might think that the moment when the first human will set foot on Mars belongs to a distant future, but NASA and ESA beg to differ. In fact, the first manned mission to Mars is expected around the year 2030, and when we're talking in space terms, this is more of an "around the corner" affair.

In preparation of the Mars missions, NASA has become interested in the studies Dainese has been carrying out to better understand the movements of the human body. The NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts funded Dainese's undertaking to engineer the Biosuit, the world's most advanced compression suit to date.

The Biosuit follows the "lines of so-called non-extension"

The Biosuit has nothing to do with the Half-Life universe; it is the most technologically-advanced compression suit ever made. Through their studies, Dainese learned that certain areas of the human body neither extend, nor are compressed during movement.

They are represented by the lines that cross the Biosuit. They can be mechanically compressed without hindering the wearer of the suit, yet remaining a fully-functional technical garment.

The Skinsuit prevents herniating spine discs

One of the drawbacks of spending longer periods of time in space is that the absence of gravity will tend to elongate the body, and the spinal cord makes no exception. The problem is that this can lead to herniating discs and this is one of the things that nobody wants.

ESA asked Dainese to come up with a solution, so the Italians delivered the Skinsuit. Made from special four-way elastic materials, nylon straps and a rigid upper section, the Skinsuit re-creates the effects gravity has on the human body.

That is, it keeps the astronauts' bodies "packed" together, preventing the unwanted spinal elongation. Each Skinsuit is tailor-made for the wearer, as the forces acting on the body must be carefully managed for each individual.

It looks like Dainese is once more one step ahead of other manufacturers of safety products. According to Jalopnik, Dainese adds these new suits to a longer list of premieres in the business, such as the initial motocross pants (1972), the first back protector (1978), knee sliders for leathers (1980), the first aerodynamic hump on leather suits (1988), toe sliders (1993), carbon fiber/kevlar gloves (1995), and recently, the D-Air airbag technology, whose development started in 2000.
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