This new vest may help women walk on the Moon

NASA's Artemis 1 mission to the moon, set for take off on Monday, will test among other things a next-generation vest designed to help women stay longer in space.

The AstroRad vest - designed jointly by the Israeli Space Agency, German Aerospace Center and NASA - is designed to better shield astronauts, especially women, from harmful radiation, CNN reported.

Astronauts travelling beyond the low Earth orbit are exposed to dangerous radiation especially during solar storms, and the threat is high while out on the moon due to insufficient atmospheric protection.


Research has shown this could be more dangerous for organs like the breasts and the ovaries, the report said, and hence the need for a special vest.

NASA's Artemis 1, named after a Greek lunar goddess, is set for 42-day voyage beyond the far side of the Moon and back.

The flight carrying three dummies is choreographed to provide valuable scientific data for future crewed missions to the Moon.

The main mannequin is called "Moonikin Campos," named after a legendary NASA engineer. It will be accompanied by two other dummies -Helga and Zohar - one of which will wear the radiation vest.

The giant Space Launch System rocket will make its maiden flight from Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Its crew capsule Orion will take several days to reach the Moon, flying around 100 kilometers at closest approach. Orion will fly astronauts in the future and is powered by a service module built by the European Space Agency.

After passing by the Moon, Orion will begin the return journey to Earth and splash down off the coast of San Diego in the Pacific.

The Artemis mission's primary objective is to test the capsule's heat shield, the largest ever built, on how it will fare on the re-entry into Earth's atmosphere.