NASA is looking to the private sector to help mature and manufacture the spacesuit it will need for its future moon missions, the first of which is targeted for 2024.

The space agency plans to build and certify the new spacesuit, which is known as the Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (xEMU). The first few suits, made in house, will be tested on the International Space Station in 2023 and worn by the astronauts who touch down on the lunar surface in 2024 on the Artemis III mission. (Artemis is NASA’s ambitious crewed lunar-exploration program, which aims to establish a long-term, sustainable human presence on and around the moon by 2028.)

But NASA wants some aid from industry thereafter. On Friday (Oct. 4), the agency published a request for information (RFI), asking for industry feedback to “refine and mature the acquisition strategy for production and services for lunar spacesuits,” as NASA officials explained in a statement. (You can view the RFI here.)

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