In 1958 Robert Heinlein published “Have Space Suit – Will Travel”. In the novel Kip, a young teenager wins a used space suit. He spends the first part of the book refurbishing the space suit so it could be used in space, but decides to sell it. Before that happens he is kidnapped and his adventure begins.
It was a great story for a pre-teen or teenage boy for fun escape reading in the early 60s. But the space suit was certainly clunky.
In Orion’s Spur, Demeter I write about the Surface Terrain Units or STUs. Yes, it does have double entendre as the suits are uncomfortable and the humidity inside the unit has the users refer to it as something to stew in. One character has a problem as she perpetually puts the suit on backward.
A whole new world has opened for space suits now though as space suits have entered the world of high fashion. Axiom Space and Prada have partnered to develop a much more comfortable space suit to be worn for intrepid adventures on their way to the Moon. The proto-type has been revealed, and appears to be the next generation space suit that NASA will be using for its 2026 Moon landing.
The story in its entirety is available at https://www.yahoo.com/news/tech/artemis-moon-suit-designed-axiom-130029637.html
Stealing a phrase from the old ad agencies, “We’ve come a long way baby.”