In “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” there’s a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment where a billionaire character scoffs at the idea of sending astronauts to the moon — “We went there 60 years ago!” And Mars, pfft! Who is he, Musk? No, the real innovation, he suggests, is sending astronauts to the sun. He even has a name for his spaceship: The Icarus (yes, the irony is lost on him).
That character may be against sending crewed missions back to the moon, but NASA certainly isn’t. The agency plans to land humans on the lunar surface as part of its ongoing Artemis initiative — in Prada, no less.
The spacesuits for Artemis 3 and Artemis 4 were designed in a collaboration between the famous Italian fashion house and Axiom Space, a private space company based in Houston, Texas. The (relatively) sleek suits allow astronauts a greater degree of mobility than previous versions, while still protecting them from dangerous cosmic radiation. They’re also designed to fit a wider range of body types, incorporating more adjustable features.
Axiom Space and Prada unveiled the suit at the 2024 International Astronautical Congress in Milan.
In April, NASA successfully launched its Artemis 2 mission, which sent a crew of four astronauts on a flyby trip around the moon. Artemis 3, slated for 2027, will see astronauts test the new Prada spacesuits for the first time in low Earth orbit.
Artemis 4 is currently scheduled to lift off by the end of 2028. It will mark the first time humans have set foot on the moon since 1972, as well as the first time a woman has been there. NASA’s long-term goal is to establish a moon base, which will allow astronauts to work (and eventually hop to Mars) from our satellite’s surface.
For now, Prada has the market cornered on out-of-this-world space fashion. But who knows — there’s still plenty of time for Dior to unveil its 2028 lunar collection.
You can catch “The Devil Wears Prada 2” in theaters now, and check out Space.com for updates on all things Artemis.