W E T S U I T
'Weightless' Environment Training Suit

Weightless Environment Training, or the facility where this occurs i.e. a weightless environment tank, is commonly abbreviated to the acronym WET. Weightless environment facilities include (effective) Zero-Gravity chambers and bodies of water or tanks sometimes refered to neutral bouyancy facilitities and, more accurately, aqueous positive pressure environments. "To be strictly accurate, the word 'weightless' should always be printed in inverted commas when used to describe people or things floating around inside a spacecraft. Most people know in gernal terms what 'weightlessness' is, but it is a state which, to be accurate, is unlikely to be achieved." [1] This is certainly the case underwater since the (effective) lack of gravity is a relative, omnidirectional positive pressure at depth. "Since weight is the product of gravity on mass, pure weightlessness could only be achieved if all gravitational effects were nullified or balanced. As everybody in the universe exerts a gravitational effect on all the others, the probability of finding a place anywhere in the universe where these gravitational fields will cancel each other out is small and to be so far away from any massy object that there is no acceleration due to gravity is at the moment only a theory. Certainly, a spot 364 kilometres above the surface of the Earth is not it." [2] Equally, a spot 364 cm, m or even km under the sea-level of the Earth is not it either!

This project seeks to design and fabricate a prototype WETsuit under sightly unconventional terms.



DEFINING PROTOTYPE SUITS REQUIREMENTS

The WET suit shall:

a.) reference the principals and anatomy of the hydromedusa in their natural underwater habitat and recorded adaptation to microgravity conditions;

b.) contain build in breathing systems (BIBS); adequate exhausts; adjustable buoyancy control; quick-release evacuation mechanisms;

c.) be made of non-corrosive, durable, transparent, and non-irritant material;

d.) be fitted with two-way audio and visual communication devices;

e.) contain water-proofed biotelemetry including but not-limited to ECG, thermal response, CO2/O2 Respiration, optical reflex and pulse;

f.) consider the integration of 6 point fully-water-tight blue-tooth motion sensors; GPS and vision capture and relay devises in the design of future generation models



L-R: Digital Body Imaging of Pell 2005 for an Australian Airforce Biomechanical Study. Manipulated in photoshop sometime afterwards! Upside down view.


SUIT CONSTRUCTION & PRODUCTION DEVELOPMENT

Achieved through rigerous studio & lab-based R&D, industry consultation, prior research comparisons, collaborative linkages and occupational health and safety standard requirements in the fields of space and underwater workwear.

We are currently in the process of identifying suitable collaborators and calling for industry partners. Please contact SPELL Mangement for more information.

[1] Sharmen, H. & Priest, C. (1993) Seize the Moment. The autobiography of Helen Sharman, London: Victor Gollancz, p 37
[2] abid. pp. 145, 146.

The Telematic Dress: evolving garments and distributed prior-proception in streaming media & fashion performance. Johannes Birringer (Brunel University, UK) & Michele Danjoux (Nottingham Trent University, UK) 2005 Paper presented at the Wearable Technologies Conference, Leeds University, September 14, 2005 UK. Copyright Birringer & Danjoux, 2005.