A technology used to protect the first astronauts to land on the moon is now on its way back to the lunar surface — and you may already have some of it hanging in your coat closet.
Intuitive Machines' Nova-C lunar lander "Odysseus" ("Odie" for short) will attempt to become the first U.S.-built commercial spacecraft to land on the moon when it tries for a touchdown near the lunar south pole on Feb. 22. The robotic probe, which lifted off Earth on Thursday (Feb. 15), will rely on its cryogenic propellant supply to power its descent to the surface. Protecting the propulsion tank from the extreme temperatures of outer space is an insulation based on what was first used by NASA's Apollo missions more than 50 years ago but has since been improved upon by Columbia Sportswear.
Related: SpaceX launches private 'Odysseus' lander on pioneering moon mission (video)
"They took the Kapton coating from Apollo and turned it into the reflective discs in their jackets," said Peter McGrath, chief operating officer at Intuitive Machines, in an interview with collectSPACE.com.
The same gold-dotted lining in Columbia's jackets and other apparel was borne out of the polyamide thermal blankets that were used to cover the Apollo lunar modules.
"We realized immediately that this was a partnership that seemed to make sense," said Haskell Beckham, vice president of innovation at Columbia Sportswear. "Once they described what they were doing and I described to them what we have in our line already for thermal reflective insulation, we realized that our material actually could provide a benefit to their lunar lander."
