Adam Savage Stunned by This NASA Prototype Apollo Spacesuit!

Adam is rendered speechless meeting this green Apollo AX-1L developmental pressure suit--an engineering prototype made by ILC Dover in the very early days of the Apollo program. Smithsonian objects conservator Lisa Young explains how spacesuit designers experimented with rubber convolute joints and other features that would become traits of the spacesuits we're familiar with today.

Shot and edited by Josh Self
Music by Jinglepunks

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#smithsonian #adamsavage #space

[seanj]

I love Adam putting his hands in his pocket so he does not touch anything when he leaned over the suit.

[MikeWood]

A spacesuit Adam hasn't seen before means hands in pockets for him. :) I wonder how many hundreds of detail pics he took of the AX-1L. :)

[lorawaring]

More with Lisa, please? So much cool information.

[codemonkeyk]

I love this series. I especially love that we are getting to see these treasures through the eyes of the conservators. There is so much knowledge to be gained through their stories.

[ClancyoftheOverflow]

She's awesome. This was amazing...

[davidcole]

Adam, I so appreciate your visits to the Air and Space Museum, I was born in 1957 just before Sputnik, my father worked for Aerojet General. So I am a child of the of the space program/race. It is so great to look at all these little seen parts of the program. Please keep up your visits. We all need to know what a Herculean effort the program was. Thanks for your work.

Dave

[riparianlife]

I love seeing SR-71 specimens in museums, but hate the fact that they no longer fly.

[randalscott]

This is a fantastic series! On a purely personal level, it couldn't have been timed better as I had visited the Independence Avenue museum on its reopening day in October. (Although this old Trekkie spent a disproportionate amount of time gazing at the USS Enterprise!) Thank you so much, Adam, for these in-depth videos from behind the scenes!

[slckby]

The fact they manage to make air tight fabric and seems is sure quite impressive, also the fact they don't inflate like ballons due to the pressure différence, truelly incredible in every possible ways...

[Shatterpath]

It's so amazing and heartening to see how Adam calms his body language when it's VERY clear that the expert (I missed her name, unfortunately) is uncomfortable. And she relaxes! Shame this is a rare talent, that sensitivity.

[TheBalunStormhands]

This is why having a QR code with each display that links directly to more information is useful.

[Sajuuk]

NASA: This our old spacesuit prototype.
Adam: Mmmm I could make this...

[brentbarr]

6:47 Adam!.. You are doing FABULOUS at keeping your hands in your pockets for the MOST part.. I totally get that it's a hard to do but you are KILLING IT!!! :)

[pauldorman]

Bravo to Lisa Young! What a knowledgeable and passionate person to learn from! Interviews like this can be such an inspiration to young people who are curious about engineering, history, and conservatorship.

[jimmyholloway]

The suit looks like Major Matt Mason! I was just looking at one of my earliest Xmas present memories from when I was maybe 6. No NASA suit I remember from the time had those joints. Matel obviously took earlier designs from which to model the toys. Cool.

[wonder_platypus]

As someone who has fallen completely into the rabbithole that is VR I'm always so thankful when you make experiences avaliable in it.

[BuddhangGala]

For sure adam will make a version for his collection

[peterlewis]

WOW the suit is the same age as me, I was born in June 1962.
Top marks to the NASA custodians, for maintaining this remarkable test suit.
Without this suit, they would not have been able to go to the Moon

[kael]

Awesome, will definitely check out the VR app.

[hollikitti]

Would a qr code added to the info tag with the suit on display help give more detail about the suit?