October 29, 2007 8:30 AM PDT
The X Prize Cup competition was part of a three-day rocket fest/air show/expo that took place at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M., over the weekend. The event celebrated technologies that organizers hope will one day make space travel affordable and turn average people into astronauts.
The event revolved around an as-yet-unsuccessful NASA competition to develop and fly a reusable lunar lander. But there was plenty of interesting material on the sidelines.
Orbital Outfitters showed off a prototype of its first pressurized suit for the commercial space industry. The suit, called the IS(3)C for Industrial Suborbital Space Suit-Crew, is specifically designed for pilots who will staff an upcoming generation of suborbital rockets.
Caption by
CNET News.com Staff