Axiom Space Is Ready to Test Its Next-Generation Spacesuit in 2027

Key Points:

• Axiom Space is nearing completion of the critical design review for its next-generation AxEMU spacesuit, aiming for certification and use in space by 2027, either on the ISS or during NASA’s Artemis 3 mission.
• NASA tasked Axiom with designing new moonwalking spacesuits for the Artemis program, marking the first since Apollo, and the company has been testing AxEMU with astronauts and engineers through simulated surface operations.
• Upcoming qualification tests will simulate launch conditions, temperatures, and pressures experienced in space to certify the suit for in-flight use, considered crucial ground testing before actual spaceflight.
• NASA’s revised Artemis timeline includes an additional 2027 flight (Artemis 3) that may test the AxEMU suit during a rendezvous with commercial landers in Earth orbit before lunar landing attempts.
• If the suit is not flown on Artemis 3, Axiom plans to test it aboard the ISS, with NASA confirming a spacesuit flight next year but details on the mission platform still under discussion.