spacetoday.net: NASA awards contract for next-gen spacesuit

NASA awards contract for next-gen spacesuit

Posted: Sat, Jun 14, 2008, 9:32 AM ET (1332 GMT)
Constellation spacesuit design (NASA)

NASA announced Thursday a contract for the development of a spacesuit that will be used for future missions to the Moon. The $183-million contract to Oceaneering International of Houston covers the development of spacesuits that will be used in the Orion spacecraft on trips to the International Space Station as well as suits that will be used on future missions on the Moon. The contract includes two options with a total value of over $560 million for spacesuit development and production. The selection of Oceaneering ends a four-decade relationship NASA had with Hamilton Sundstrand, who had been designing spacesuits for NASA since the 1960s.