David Clark Company’s Newest Space Suit Takes Flight
Worcester, Mass.
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June 14, 2024 12:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time
On June 5, 2024, NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams wore David Clark Company’s newest space suit, the S1100 Salus, to orbit. Launched aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft at 10:52am EDT, as part of Crew Flight Test, the two crewmembers wore their Salus suits throughout launch operations, beginning their journey to the International Space Station. They will wear the suits for docking and reentry operations, as they complete this certification flight of the vehicle and the suit.
The S1100 Salus is the lightest weight space suit ever flown. It is extremely comfortable, minimal thermal burden, and does not require the complexity, mass, and bulk associate to liquid cooling. Its integral air-cooling features, including a diverter valve that allows for multiple operating modes, and a selectively permeable bladder layer, kept the crewmembers cool as they waited on the launch pad prior to launch from the Florida coast.
Building upon David Clark’s storied history as a provider of space suits for Gemini, Apollo and Space Shuttle missions, the engineering and design team incorporated innovative features in the new suit design, such as touch-screen compatible gloves, a soft helmet, and lightweight conformal footwear – co-developed with Reebok. The extremely wide field of view, high mobility elbows and shoulders, and minimal bulk ensure crewmembers have maximum capability inside their spacecraft, for both nominal and contingency operations.
With the successful completion of Crew Flight Test, this suit will serve as the qualified baseline design for Starliner. Additionally, the S1100 Salus is the new gold standard for launch and entry space suits, serving as a design reference for future David Clark suit designs.
Contact Details
Will Andersen
+1 401-521-2700
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