To support the extravehicular activity (EVA) from the MIR orbiting station, the ORLAN-DMA space suit of a semi-rigid type is currently used.
As the tasks to be accomplished within the MIR-SHUTTLE and ISSA programs become more complicated, Zvezda has to improve its EVA suit substantially.
In comparison with the existing EVA suit, the ORLAN-M, a modified configuration of the EVA suit, offers increased EVA efficiency, simplified onboard EVA support subsystem used in the airlock mode and removal of drawbacks identified in the course of the multiyear operations of Russian EVA suits.
The new suit will be interchangeable with the suit used for the MIR program.
The paper reviews results of the Design and Development activities, presents brief descriptions of modified system components and schematics, and describes preliminary results of the suit model tests.