PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- When scientists are trying to figure out how to live in near-isolation in a dome to simulate a Mars mission, the last thing they'll need is an ill-fitting space suit. So one of the nation's top design schools has come to the rescue.
Staff and students at the Rhode Island School of Design have come up with a new, adjustable suit that closely resembles an actual space suit.
Real space suits are designed to work in zero gravity. They're too expensive and too heavy to use at the NASA-funded Mars simulation mission in Hawaii.
The simulated space suits that are used instead wear out quickly and aren't all that comfortable. They're size small and ventilation is poor.
The new suit was unveiled Monday in Providence.