Five Questions With: Michael Lye

RHODE ISLAND School of Design professor Michael Lye is shown with astronaut Andrzej Stewart, who is wearing a Mars simulation spacesuit that was created in Lye’s class. / COURTESY JO SITTENFELD/RISD
RHODE ISLAND School of Design professor Michael Lye is shown with astronaut Andrzej Stewart, who is wearing a Mars simulation spacesuit that was created in Lye’s class. / COURTESY JO SITTENFELD/RISD

Michael Lye, a Rhode Island School of Design professor, led an independent research project to design a full-scale, wearable model of a NASA spacesuit designed to be functional in a Mars simulation environment. Lye, whose title is senior critic industrial design, talks with Providence Business News about creating the spacesuit and some of the challenges that arose.

PBN: Where did the idea for this project come from? How long has RISD worked with NASA?

LYE: The genesis of this project grew out of other work we were doing with NASA. One of the courses I teach is called “Design Extreme Environments.” It is an advanced design studio that collaborates with NASA on a variety of projects. One of the guest critics I invited to participate in the final critique was Sheyna Gifford, who had just finished a 30-day simulated Mars mission in Houston. After she saw the work the students were doing, Sheyna came to RISD to ask us to design a better suit for the next analogue mission she was participating in – the yearlong HI-SEAS mission in Hawaii.

RISD has been working with NASA for over 20 years. In the last 12 years, we’ve collaborated on a variety of projects including designing equipment for the International Space Station, rovers for planetary exploration, equipment for exploring asteroids, as well as habitats and spacecraft for deep space missions. NASA comes to RISD for innovative ideas based on the fresh perspective and the creative talents of the RISD students.

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PBN: What was the most challenging part of the project?

LYE: The most challenging aspect of a project like this is trying to make one suit comfortably fit a range of people of different sizes and body types. This suit is intended for use by analog missions – like HI-SEAS in Hawaii and the Mars Desert Research Station – and needs to fit a variety of different people without replacing many components or making other major changes to the suit itself. But at the same time, some dimensions are critical in order for the suit to work and be comfortable. It will never be a one-size-fits-all suit but we’re trying to make it very adjustable and adaptable to fit as many as we can.

PBN: Who were the students that were involved in the project and what are they studying at RISD?

LYE: The students that worked on the project are:

  • Katarzyna Matlak, working on her Masters in Industrial Design (MID)
  • Erica Kim, studying Apparel Design and Industrial Design (BFA)
  • Michaela Wong, studying Apparel Design and Industrial Design (BFA)
  • Maya Samach, studying Apparel Design (BFA)
  • Alyssa Mayo, working on her Masters in Industrial Design (MID)
  • Jake Pill, studying Industrial Design (BFA)
  • Bojian Han, studying Industrial Design (BFA)
  • Sung Wha Kang, studying Industrial Design (BFA)

PBN: Do you know what sort of testing the suit will undergo at the Mars simulation in Hawaii?

LYE: The landscape around the HI-SEAS site in Hawaii is good analogue of a Martian exploration location and provides a rigorous test of the suit. It will be worn just as a real spacesuit would be worn while a crew member conducts research outside of the habitat. The ventilation and cooling systems will be evaluated for capacity and the ability to maintain a comfortable working temperature inside the suit. It will be evaluated for durability, repairability, and comfort as well as the ability to simulate a suit that would be used on Mars. The suit will also be tested for fit, comfort and range of motion on many different subjects before and while in Hawaii.

PBN: How long did it take to make and what is it made out of?

LYE: The suit project began just over a year ago with discussions about the need for such a suit. About half the time was used for research and preliminary design work, before moving into detailed design and fabrication work. To put it another way, the suit has taken more than 1,500 person-hours to complete. It is made primarily from carbon fiber composites and heavy duty nylon Cordura fabrics. It has a polycarbonate face shield, aluminum bearing housings and other parts, and a limited number of steel parts to minimize weight.

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