Students mull clothing demands of Mars-bound astronauts
As part of the Spacetex project, students in Germany have been asked to design clothing for astronauts' 2030 mission to Mars, with the winning designer taking a EUR 3,000 prize.
Organised by German textile testing institute Hohenstein, Schoeller Textil, the Charité hospital and the German Aerospace Centre, the project has sent textiles into space to assess how the environment differs from earth. German astronaut Alexander Gerst will return to earth with the textiles in November for researchers to analyse.
Students have been asked to design highly functional clothing as station wear, using such high-tech materials. Unlike the suits worn during take-off, landing and working outside, station wear does not have to offer any special protection, but must satisfy functional requirements. The activities undertaken by the astronauts such as their daily exercise or routine maintenance have to be considered, as does cleaning the clothing.
A panel, headed by project director Dr Jan Beringer, will shortlist 10 finalists by the end of the year, with prizes awarded at Techtextil 2015 in Frankfurt.
A closer look at the Spacetex project can be found in WSA July/August, available as a free downloadable PDF in our archive.
