Columbia Tests Its Technology ... on the Moon

OMNI-HEAT Infinity technology delivered by Columbia Sportswear

Ahead lies frosty winter, but even our lowest temperatures cannot match the Moon, where night temperatures drop to -150° Celsius. In the 60s this challenged NASA scientists working on the historic Apollo 11 mission. They had to protect the lander module from intense cold on the lunar surface, developing a highly reflective insulation material. Thus the space blanket was born.

In coming months Intuitive Machines starts its first lunar mission, carrying commercial cargo and NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services loads to prepare future crewed landings. The mission launching in 2023 aims to sample and analyse ice under the lunar surface. With science partner Intuitive Machines, Columbia Sportswear supplies its Omni-Heat Infinity thermo-reflective technology, shielding the Nova-C lunar lander from deep-space low temperatures.

A giant leap for outerwear

Almost five decades later Columbia Sportswear designers faced a problem the outdoor industry could not solve: how to make layers warmer while ensuring top breathability? A 'what if' approach led Columbia to adapt NASA's space blanket technology into Omni-Heat™ Reflective, a light metallic lining reflecting body heat while letting fabric breathe.

In FW2021 Columbia launched another – its most advanced yet – version of flagship winter technology. Compared to the first version based on an aluminium dot 'matrix', Omni-Heat™ Infinity uses golden, bigger dots for 40% more thermal insulation and instant warmth, keeping equally high air and moisture permeability.

Field test

Thus history came full circle. Fifty years after humanity's last Moon landing, Intuitive Machines (IM) plans a return mission. When their Nova-C lander launches on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, part will be insulated with Columbia's Omni-Heat Infinity material, which in pre-launch thermal simulations helped protect the IM lander from extreme space temperatures.

This mission gives Columbia Sportswear a chance to apply and test products in conditions so hostile they cannot compare even to Earth's most demanding places. Mission discoveries will help the American brand improve products and develop new ones, making outdoors available to everyone.

Columbia Sportswear press material