Prada and Axiom Space unveil next-generation lunar spacesuit layer ahead of humanity’s return to the moon

The next Prada creation destined to make headlines will not appear on a fashion runway, but on the lunar surface.

The Italian luxury house has partnered with aerospace company Axiom Space to unveil the Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment (LCVG), a key component of the next-generation Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU) spacesuit that astronauts are expected to wear during future missions to the moon. 

Designed as the innermost layer of the spacesuit, the garment plays a crucial role in keeping astronauts comfortable and safe during lunar exploration.

From runway to moon

The announcement marks the latest milestone in an unlikely but increasingly significant collaboration between luxury fashion and space exploration. 

While Prada is best known for its ready-to-wear collections and leather goods, the brand has spent the past several years applying its expertise in advanced materials, technical manufacturing, and product development to one of the most demanding environments imaginable: outer space.

The LCVG is worn directly against an astronaut’s body beneath the protective layers of the spacesuit. As astronauts perform physically demanding tasks on the moon, their bodies generate substantial heat that must be carefully managed. 

The garment addresses this challenge through a network of tubes that circulates cold water around the wearer’s major muscle groups, absorbing excess heat before transferring it to the suit’s life-support system, where it is expelled into space.

In addition to temperature regulation, the garment supports breathing. A separate ventilation system continuously delivers fresh oxygen across the astronaut’s face while removing exhaled carbon dioxide, which is then processed through the suit’s life-support system before oxygen is recirculated. 

Unlike previous cooling garments, the new design also incorporates a fully redundant cooling circuit, ensuring a backup system remains available should the primary loop fail.

The future involves fashion

Prada’s contribution centred on areas where the company has decades of expertise. Drawing on its knowledge of engineered knitting, advanced textiles, and garment construction, the fashion house helped develop a more comfortable and durable solution using specialised fibres that withstand repeated use during long-duration missions. 

The garment was also developed using advanced 3D modelling techniques to optimise cooling performance while improving comfort and mobility.

The project builds on a partnership first revealed in 2024, when Prada collaborated with Axiom Space on the outer protective layer of the AxEMU. That earlier work focused on helping the spacesuit withstand the extreme temperatures and micrometeoroid conditions expected at the moon’s south pole. 

With the LCVG, the collaboration has moved from the suit’s outer shell to the layer closest to the astronaut’s body, where comfort, thermal management, and reliability become equally critical.

As NASA prepares for future Artemis missions and humanity’s long-awaited return to the moon, the partnership demonstrates how expertise from seemingly unrelated industries can contribute to the next era of exploration.