NASA’s new idea for gender equity: a body scanner that creates custom spacesuits

In March 2019, NASA had to postpone the first all-female spacewalk due to an unexpected snag: a shortage of medium-sized spacesuits. The milestone was pushed back after astronaut Anne McClain realized she needed a smaller configuration than originally planned. While the spacesuit had swappable parts, replacing the necessary piece could have taken up to 12 hours. On McClain’s recommendation, NASA switched the spacewalkers to avoid delaying the mission. The move was rational, but it put the spotlight on the uniformity of spacesuits. McClain’s outfit was an upgraded version of kit developed in the 1970s, when most astronauts were larger men. …

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