This week the Midland International Air and Space Port announced a new feature – an altitude chamber – that will be made available by a company called Orbital Outfitters.
The company makes space suits for use by either government agencies or private individuals. The purpose of the chamber is to test space suits.
“We’re just a couple of weeks away from formally handing it over to Orbital Outfitters,” Design Engineer Ken Doyle said. “It’s been a very fun project.”
Doyle said in a couple months they’ll begin testing people in space suits in the chambers.
“We anticipate having civilians in here in space suits, not military test pilot types,” said Doyle.
According to Jeff Feige, an Orbital Outfitters employee, the two altitude chambers are the first in the world that have maximum visibility, which makes a one-of-a-kind facility.
The public has the opportunity to test the space suits in the chamber, but for a hefty price. For the smaller two man chamber it costs roughly around $15,000 to operate for one day.
The space port is located at 9506 La Force Boulevard in Midland. CLICK HERE for more information about Orbital Outfitters.
