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Adidas reveals sneakers inspired by vintage NASA space suits

Adidas' upcoming 2015 collection includes two sets of sneakers designed by Raf Simons inspired by space attire.

Michelle Starr Science editor
Michelle Starr is CNET's science editor, and she hopes to get you as enthralled with the wonders of the universe as she is. When she's not daydreaming about flying through space, she's daydreaming about bats.
Michelle Starr

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Response Trail Robot Adidas

It's an infinitesimally small percentage of the human race that gets to don a space suit, but if you've ever aspired to walk in space, two new pairs of Adidas sneakers will at least let you feel a bit astronauty.

Designed by Christian Dior creative director Raf Simons in his fifth year of collaboration with the German brand, the shoes are based on two pre-existing Adidas shoes -- Ozweego and Response Trail. The shoes are named Ozweego Robot and Response Trail Robot, which doesn't make a huge amount of sense if they're inspired by astronauts, but they certainly look the part.

"Inspired by vintage astronaut suits and backpacks, moulded and machined details similar to authentic closures, zippers and straps are added," Adidas said in a statement. "Shiny versus matte distressed materials complete the look of outer space."

NASA's first space suits, made for the Mercury mission, were only worn inside the space craft, and were stitched out of a silver material. By the time the second space suits rolled around -- for the Gemini mission -- NASA had switched to a white fabric, with red and blue elements, which were made much more prominent for the Apollo suits.

The shoes are due to hit selected retailers sometime in July, with an expected price range between $455 and $730. Or you could try to make yourself a pair of magnetic astronaut boots, which sounds at least the same level of fun.

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Ozweego Robot Adidas