Advanced spacesuit. Artwork from the leg of the BioSuit, a prototype advanced spacesuit designed by Dava Newman, professor of aeronautics and astronau

Advanced spacesuit. Artwork from the leg of the BioSuit, a prototype advanced spacesuit designed by Dava Newman, professor of aeronautics and astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA. Present-day spacesuits surround the wearer with a balloon-like layer of pressurised oxygen making them very bulky and heavy. The BioSuit incorporates tight fabric and a gas pressure system that exerts pressure directly onto the wearer's skin. This spacesuit is lighter and more flexible compared to present day suits. Future versions of the suit will incorporate sensors, a life support system and artificial muscles. Photographed in 2005.