Colorado teen designs spacesuit prototypes after joining NASA's simulated Mars mission

As high school graduation season begins, many seniors are mapping out their next steps -- college, technical training, or entering the workforce. But one Colorado student is already reaching for the stars.

Riley Nuttycombe, a senior at New Vista High School in Boulder, spent her final year redesigning spacesuits as part of a capstone project. She devoted more than 200 hours to creating prototype designs to improve astronaut mobility, comfort, and airflow.

"This is a 3D-printed plastic model with a hood I sewed at home and then stitched on by hand," Nuttycombe said.

Using a snorkel mask as her starting point, she aimed to rethink helmet designs that she said haven't changed significantly in decades.

"We're still using the same helmets we used 25 to 30 years ago," she said. "I wanted to create something lighter and that had better mobility as well as better airflow."

Her work extended beyond the classroom this spring when she joined NASA's Spaceward Bound program. Nuttycombe tested her designs at the Mars Desert Research Station in Utah, a simulated Martian environment operated by the Mars Society where she was the only student among a team of educators.

"It feels like you're on Mars," she said. "You wake up in the morning, you can't go outside the habitat, there are tunnels."

This marked Nuttycombe's second mission to simulated Mars -- where she first found her passion for improving spacesuit design.

"We need our spacesuits to not be injuring our astronauts," she said. "Making them more lightweight, making them more- fit to the human, not just the mission, is hugely important."

As she looks toward graduation and her future, Nuttycombe said she hopes to stay involved in aerospace technology.

"I would love to go to space someday, but I think the technology side of things is more where I'm going to end up," she said.

Her message to others is to start now: "Go for it, try it out -- you can do anything."