As NASA works to one day send astronauts to asteroids and eventually to Mars, the space agency is also looking for new spacesuits that will keep the astronauts safe, while enabling them to move freely.

Scientists at MIT say they are making such a spacesuit — one that is less bulky than the typical gas-pressurized suits and more like a second skin.

“With conventional spacesuits, you’re essentially in a balloon of gas that’s providing you with the necessary one-third of an atmosphere [of pressure,] to keep you alive in the vacuum of space,” said Dava Newman, a professor of aeronautics and astronautics and engineering systems at MIT, in a statement. “We want to achieve that same pressurization, but through mechanical counterpressure — applying the pressure directly to the skin, thus avoiding the gas pressure altogether… Ultimately, the big advantage is mobility, and a very lightweight suit for planetary exploration.”

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