Ever wonder how astronauts eat inside their spacesuit? Envision wearing your very own spacecraft that keeps you safe and enables you to explore unreached landscapes, while traversing and working in extreme temperatures for over eight hours. An astronaut’s physiological demands are not only mentally challenging, but physically tough. So, how do they stay personally fueled?
Axiom Space, developer of the next-generation spacesuit, has partnered with GU Energy Labs to develop an advanced in-suit nutrition system for astronauts, providing a crucial energy source for these extreme athletes working in the most extreme environments. The ultimate goal … astronauts will fuel up inside the AxEMU by consuming GU energy gels, traditionally used during ultra-marathons, long distance triathlons, and other physically strenuous activities.
The collaboration is a natural fit for GU, the family-owned, Berkeley-based brand that created the world’s first sports energy gel and continues to develop sports nutrition products that help athletes of all kinds go beyond their own limits. “At GU, we have always been inspired to fuel athletes pushing themselves to the extremes and this collaboration is an extension of that mission,” said Roxanne Vogel, Nutrition & Performance Research Manager at GU and accomplished endurance athlete in her own right. “Our goal is to provide critical nutrients in a convenient, hands-free delivery format, to help fuel astronauts as they push the limits of human space exploration.”