Textiles have been essential to realizing the aspirations of powered flight held by humanity for nearly as long. People have utilized cloth to allow gliding and actual flight for millennia, starting with the Wright Brothers’ maiden flight and continuing through the use of fabric in medieval Chinese and Japanese battle kites and Leonardo da Vinci’s wings during the Renaissance. Feathers and wax were stitched into cloth even by the Greek mythological figures Icarus and Daedalus.
One of the first useful ideas for textiles in flight was sails. Increasing their durability or strength would often result in weight gain. Although lighter fabrics were more manageable, they needed more regular upkeep and were less resilient to the sea air and direct sunshine. Wool was by far the most widely used sail material in antiquity, and the Vikings made the most of its plentiful supply. Because of their lightweight and portability, Viking longboats served as an inspiration for later boat builders to modify their own designs. These advances have advanced along with technology, and the air and space sectors are becoming more and more dependent on textiles with time. The news was generated when Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner aircraft made its debut, mostly due to its eighty percent composite construction built of carbon fiber reinforced plastic.
Twenty years later, the concept is accepted as standard. It is important to consider the following questions as we look to the future: What uses will textiles have in the aerospace sector, and what textiles will humans carry to the Moon and Mars?
Weight Loss and Increased Utility
One of the strongest natural fibers on the planet, hemp fabric requires less minerals and nutrients from the soil and is more durable than cotton fabric of a comparable weight. Hempearth, a Canadian cannabis corporation, was able to capitalize on this in 2021 when Derek Kesek unveiled the world’s first aircraft made entirely of hemp. Hemp fibers are used extensively in its construction, from the chassis to the seat cushions, and it runs on cannabis oil rather than fossil fuels. In many aerospace applications, these composite hemp fibers could easily replace fiberglass because they are lighter and up to ten times stronger than steel.1 Kesek’s hemp-based composite construction is particularly promising in the aerospace and other industries where it is important to minimize the weight of items without sacrificing their strength. Innovations like this may be vital to a mission, especially in space travel where a kilogram’s worth of mass can add thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, to the launch cost.
American corporations like 3M and Honeywell have discovered remarkable applications for their lightweight composite fabrics in the aircraft industry. Graphene, molybdenum, and other knitted meshes are being used more often by communications satellite manufacturers to increase signal quality and allow their spacecraft to fold into compact spaces before launch. These fabrics’ knitted structure maximizes surface area while minimizing bulk, enabling more intricate patterns and uses. Strong tethers and spacesuits can also be made with them; as weaving and braiding techniques advance, it’s unclear what additional uses these materials will have.
Creative Ways the Aerospace Sector is Applying Antiquated Technology
NASA carried a suite of seven main research equipment, including the first system intended to return samples from Mars, when it launched the Perseverance lander in 2020. It also contained a fragment of a helmet visor and five samples of Earth materials for use in space suits. Each of these samples is being regularly scanned by the Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics & Chemicals (SHERLOC) instrument, providing space agencies and commercial firms with vital first-hand experience years before humans begin to settle on the red planet. Even just knowing basic knowledge about materials that have been around for a while is quite helpful, particularly when paired with the cutting-edge materials that are covered in this article’s following section.
Methodology is one of the most visible ways that the aerospace industry uses historical knowledge. Since knitting and weaving have been around for millennia, their uses have only grown thanks to the development of new materials like carbon fiber. These structures are also a prerequisite for many of the smart fabrics used in the most inventive aeronautical applications. One of the most recent developments in smart fabrics was created mainly for the aircraft industry. The Smart Electrically Powered and Networked Textile Systems (SMART ePANTS) technology was introduced earlier in 2023 by Leidos Incorporated, a technology business, and Nautilus Defence, an American textile contractor. This invention, developed in collaboration with the US Navy, combines antenna arrays with data networks and electricity in a range of smart textile applications. This effort might lead to wire-free acoustic protection, clothing-integrated distributed computers, and other body-worn electronics that will be very helpful in the aircraft industry.
Novel Materials, Novel Applications
For many years, fabrics have been essential to the aerospace sector. These materials not only provide insulation and weather protection, but they may simultaneously offer strength, flexibility, and fire resistance. But just because the sector has been using them for so long doesn’t mean that new ideas can’t be developed.
In this context, heat and flame resistance provide some of the biggest potential. The industry has relied on textiles like DuPont’s Nomex for decades because of their flexibility, low weight, and flame resistance. But for even more impact, people have begun incorporating aerogels into fabrics in recent years. Aerogel textiles are ideal for use in spacesuits because of their flexibility and thinness; space agencies have been employing them for this purpose for decades. However, textiles composed of aerogels may provide further insulation against than only heat. Because of their large pore capacity, aerogel structures have a low resonant frequency, dynamic stiffness, and good vibration damping properties. Aerogel textiles have the potential to open up new opportunities in a variety of industries, as noted by a group of mechanical engineers at the University of Texas, Dallas, who discovered these materials’ ability to isolate vibrations. Resonant vibrations are among the biggest risks associated with space flight, particularly during launch and landing.
Almost every facet of the aerospace industry is using not just aerogels but also novel materials, enhanced weaving and production techniques, and inventive fabric coatings. These substances have been included into gaskets, fire safety systems, airframe seals, insulating coverings, and jet engines. Furthermore, the development of 3D printing has given aerospace textiles a fresh burst of creativity. In order to minimize waste on Earth, textile companies are researching how to incorporate 3D printing into their operations. These same techniques will support lengthy lunar and Mars expeditions.
Going Back to the Moon and Continuing on to Mars
The last time humans stepped foot on the moon was almost fifty years ago. Back then, NASA personally selected a group of seamstresses in Dover, Delaware, to make every space suit by hand. These ladies saw their job as a “one-person spacecraft” and collaborated closely with NASA’s engineers to maximize accuracy. Not even their threads had been utilized before. Since then, the textile and aeronautical sectors have advanced significantly. NASA has rethought its approach to space suits as it plans to send people back to the Moon with the Artemis missions that were announced earlier this year. Previously, each astronaut’s space suit was custom made for them; now, space suits are manufactured and stored “off the rack” in the same facility in Dover, with modular parts that can be changed out for each user. For the Apollo astronauts, lunar dust was a serious issue, and for the Artemis crew, it still will. The suits used for the Artemis missions are being developed to prevent the abrasive impact, even though the suits used on current space missions do not need to take this into consideration. The next-generation AxEMU spacesuit from Axiom Space is designed especially to ward against lunar dust. Due to proprietary considerations, the business has not disclosed the precise nature of this dust mitigation. However, they have worked closely with NASA to guarantee that the Artemis astronauts won’t have the same respiratory and technical problems as the Apollo mission crews.
When packing for a long-term space voyage, astronauts must exercise tremendous caution. This often entails packing the least amount of clothes feasible and getting rid of it as soon as it becomes dirty or unwearable. Former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly was subject to the same severe clothing regulations as any other visitor during his year-long stay on the International Space Station (ISS), with restrictions depending on the weight of his clothing and the duration of his visit. He did not carry these clothes home, either, as did all ISS crew members; as they were filthy, they were destroyed in a deteriorating orbit by burning up in the atmosphere. That can add up to 68 kg of clothing in a year, which would quickly become unmanageable on a long-term mission with multiple people (particularly when they are outside low Earth orbit and have nowhere to dispose of their soiled clothing).3 American company Procter & Gamble is working on a solution to this problem, creating washing machines and laundry detergents specifically designed for zero- and low-gravity applications—ideally using recycled wastewater. Other businesses are developing fabric coatings and antimicrobial textiles to extend the wear and tear of astronaut uniforms.
An essential component of the aircraft sector is thermal management. For almost as long as there has been air travel, heat exchangers, both active and passive, have been used in aircraft construction by manufacturers. The need for thermal control increased with the introduction of space flight. While this was going on, space agencies in the US and the USSR relied more and more on textiles to protect their payloads from the very high temperatures they would experience while exiting and reentering Earth’s atmosphere. Beta glass fibers were the gold standard in the early stages of the space race and much more so with NASA’s space shuttle. Seven distinct fabrics were used in the space shuttle’s thermal protection system at various locations within the orbiter, depending on the region that required heat protection. Even nevertheless, a large number of these tiles were very brittle and could not be utilized again for other missions. The initial space shuttle design’s thermal protection system tiles were so thin that they were readily broken by hand. Space agencies have advanced significantly in this area in recent years.
In the twenty-first century, ultramodern fabrics are used for thermal management in both spacecraft and space suits. In 2022, one researcher looked at the use of graphene and its derivatives for flame retardancy, passive and active thermal protection, and spaceship utilization.4 The study also looked at the use of these materials in space suits. Graphene will be indispensable to the aerospace sector for many years to come due to its exceptional strength, flexibility, and thermal protection properties. Shape-shifting textiles have lately gained attention for active heat management in aircraft environments, in addition to these absorbent and reflective insulators and phase change materials (PCMs). Textiles with shape-shifting properties react to their surroundings, unlike their counterparts. They may be included into a space suit’s lining to react to an astronaut’s excessive perspiration. The University of Maryland’s MetaCool cloth, which was initially described in Science in 2019, adjusts its pore size and opening in response to humidity and temperature outside. Apart from its immediate use in spacesuits, the team’s thermally sensitive fabric is demonstrating significant potential for domestic usage. By significantly lowering the requirement for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning in houses and big structures, insulation constructed of MetaCool may also lessen the effect of human activity on the planet’s environment.
In contrast, Mars is a much farther-off objective in terms of both time and space. In addition, there is a distinct need for environmental preservation on Mars due to its propensity for strong windstorms that disperse Martian sand and dust worldwide, in contrast to the Moon. Complicating things further is the expectation that no samples of genuine Martian soil will arrive on Earth until the early 2030s. Nonetheless, for many years, designers have used Martian regolith imitators to simulate the effects of this dust on landers. More recently, they have also used similar technology to create space suits. In order to capture these particles, a team of researchers at Deakin University in Australia has tested an electrospinning machine that adds nanofibers to haze masks, air filtration systems, and other products. These filters will probably be useful on Earth before they ever reach the red planet, as Earth’s climate change continues to worsen. Similarly, a fluoropolymer matrix is used in NASA’s self-cleaning “Lotus Coating” to enhance nano-scale roughness for passive dust, ice, and water mitigation. The coating is mostly intended for hard surfaces, although it may be used on almost everything. It could even end up in the clean rooms where the capsules are made, in addition to its possible use in space textiles.
A Martian spacesuit must struggle with an atmosphere, unlike lunar and International Space Station (ISS) spacesuits, which are optimized for the vacuum of space and even take advantage of the absence of atmosphere to boost their thermal insulation. Furthermore, a human residence on Mars is probably going to include up to 40% oxygen, as opposed to Earth’s 20% atmosphere, unlike the atmosphere on the International Space Station. Advanced flame resistance will be necessary for this, in addition to long-term comfort and reusability. Designers have incorporated Kevlar into denim, giving them thermal protection while still being comfortable to wear, as a nod to the Australian apparel business Draggin Jeans.
Almost everything that humans carry on a long-term space trip must serve many purposes. For an extended period, the Johnson Space Centre (JSC) and NASA’s Wearable Electronics Application and Research (WEAR) Laboratory have collaborated with diverse designers to create intelligent fabrics that have the ability to monitor astronauts’ whereabouts and well-being, provide audio and video, and perform other functions. Their most recent creation is an upper body exoskeleton made of flexible cloth. It improves the wearer’s control over their elbows and shoulders because of its portability and lightweight design. Although the long-term health of astronauts in the reduced gravity of Mars and the Moon was the primary concern of the exoskeleton’s designers, hospitals will probably also find use for these suits because of the technology’s great potential for helping stroke and other traumatic brain injury patients recover.
Additionally, the JSC collaborates with other colleges worldwide to support student innovation. The Ohio State University Ph.D. student Ally Rice came up with one of the most recent ideas using this program. Her faculty adviser and she developed a wearable fabric sleeve last year that tracks important indicators of astronauts, such fluid distribution and muscle tone, using biomatched antennae. This will enable them to adjust their physical activity level and deal with problems like muscle atrophy before they worsen. It may also save them from having to carry big, hefty scanning equipment with them wherever they go. These sleeves might be used to monitor osteoporosis and potentially even identify cancer here on Earth.
Allowing astronauts to produce the necessary resources on their own is an alternative strategy for a long-term journey to Mars. Long-term space flight requires this idea, which is known as in situ resource utilisation. But because space organizations couldn’t cultivate crops or produce animals on the red planet, they had to accept that each trip would need hundreds of pounds of textiles that would work on Mars. People are working very hard to fix that with the Mars Boot. The Mars Boot was just unveiled by shoe designer Liz Ciokajlo and industrial engineer Maurizio Montalti. These boots are made especially for the terrain, radiation, and gravity of Mars. More significantly, the materials incorporate mycelial fungus into pre-existing fabrics, which the astronauts may carry with them on their mission. To further optimize their usage of resources, the astronauts may even use their own recycled perspiration into the production process.
Finally, clothing that is well matched to the environment will be needed by those who finally go to Mars, both inside and outside of their home. Anurita Chandola, an Indian textile and fashion designer, has made spacesuits that can be used as sleeping bags and outfits that can be molded to maximize their use while maintaining their form in the low Martian gravity. People will find it simpler to survive under lower gravity on Mars and throughout the seven-month voyage with inside cushioning cushions. She has also experimented with natural dyes and dyeing techniques that will lessen the trash that a Mars expedition creates as part of her work with the UK’s Building a Martian House initiative. Last but not least, she has incorporated several traditional Indian motifs and patterns into her space-wear collection.
Using the Past of the Textile Industry to Build a New Future
From hand-making sails and covering them with oil, the globe has gone a long way. These days, fiberglass and composite materials rule the transportation world thanks to their strength and weight. Every link in that chain, from rockets to early aircraft to war kites, has advanced the industry. And even now, all the links in that connection remain intact. Ultimately, preserving the past is just as vital as moving forward with the future. Since textiles are the very fabric of human civilization, they will be essential to the creative solutions needed for unique situations. Only when sectors learn from their history can the future realize its full potential, and even relatively young industries like aerospace have a wealth of historical data to draw on.
