Science

Elon Musk reveals SpaceX spacesuit

The sleek, white pressure suit balances looks and function, which Musk says is "incredibly hard."

Richard Trenholm Former Movie and TV Senior Editor

Richard Trenholm was CNET's film and TV editor, covering the big screen, small screen and streaming. A member of the Film Critic's Circle, he's covered technology and culture from London's tech scene to Europe's refugee camps to the Sundance film festival.

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Richard Trenholm

Aug. 23, 2017 6:20 a.m. PT

Suit up, space fans! Elon Musk on Wednesday revealed the first look at the spacesuit to be worn aboard SpaceX missions.

Musk notes that the two-tone white and gray suit has been "tested to double vacuum pressure" and strikes a balance between looks and function. It'll be worn by SpaceX crew members when they blast off to the International Space Station and beyond.

First picture of SpaceX spacesuit. More in days to follow. Worth noting that this actually works (not a mockup). Already tested to double vacuum pressure. Was incredibly hard to balance esthetics and function. Easy to do either separately.

A post shared by Elon Musk (@elonmusk) on Aug 23, 2017 at 12:59am PDT

SpaceX is a private space exploration company founded by Musk, who also founded . It's launched a number of supply spacecraft to the International Space Station over the last several years and now has plans to send tourists around the moon, starting perhaps as soon as late 2018.

Musk isn't the only mogul looking to send tourists into space. Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic, though, have plans in the works to boost sightseers only to rather modest suborbital altitudes.

And then there's the Red Planet. Musk last year set an even more distant horizon for his cosmic ambitions, laying out a vision of colonizing Mars with up to a million people. That project could take 40 to 100 years to accomplish -- at which point we're likely to see new trends in spacesuit fashions.

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