One of the critical tasks for the upcoming Artemis missions is completing new spacesuits for astronauts to wear while on the lunar surface. The suits are critical, as they must protect astronauts from severe temperatures, the moon’s lack of a meaningful atmosphere, and sharp, jagged lunar regolith.

In September 2022, NASA awarded Axiom Space a $228.5 million contract to develop the next-generation spacesuit for the Artemis III mission to the moon. The suits, called Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU), are still being developed. Today, Axiom Space announced that they have moved into a new testing phase: they are testing the AxEMU suits underwater in NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory in Houston, a critical step to ensure suit performance and to inform the company of areas where improvements are needed.

The company shared two photographs of the ongoing tests at the NBL this morning on X.com, saying “The AxEMU entered the water for the first time this week at NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL). Testing was conducted with an unoccupied spacesuit, adding weights to accurately simulate the lunar environment, where gravitational forces are 1/6th of Earth’s.”

According to NASA, ” These tests are integral to ensuring the spacesuit is effective and complies with NASA’s safety and performance requirements.” Currently, the Artemis III mission will be the first that the AxEMU suits will be required, with the current estimated date for the mission launch no earlier than September of 2026. Critical items like the SpaceX Human Landing System and the suit must be perfected and crew-rated before the launch. SpaceX suggests that the fourth launch test of their new Starship rocket will occur sometime in May.

Axiom Space added in a subsequent X.com post that “With the successful conclusion of this trial run, the next NBL suit run will have our very own astronaut inside.” They did not specify a date or who will be inside the lunar suit.

For more information regarding the AxEMU suit, visit Axiom Space.