Just something I was wondering, with all the advanced technology is it really likely they would still be using bulky space suits? Wouldn't it be smart to equip starfleet crew with uniforms that include some kind of space survival technology by default? Like you push a button and the helmet pops out from the neck and goes around your head. That way they don't have to put on this bulky suit. And it would save anyone who gets sucked out into space.
I agree and disagree with you here. Yes, it does seem that if Starfleet has had warp drive for centuries that uniforms with the ability to convert to an EV mode could potentially exist. The cons to this idea are that it would probably make the uniforms more bulky for standard inside the ship (or anywhere) use, reducing the functionality of the standard duty uniform. Also, given the large size of current day EV suits, the ones used in First Contact and Voyager are very small by comparison. Beyond that, they are thick and bulky so that if something goes wrong, (which it often does in those suits) the wearer has more protection to increase survivability. I would agree that a "last resort" option should and could exist on a uniform, but I think an EV sit would end up being more effective and practical.
It's more likely that on exposure to vacuum, a bubble would form around the wearer. It could be a surface layer on the uniform that expands to form it, or a deflated bubble on a belt or in a boot heel. More problematic os the o2 supply. Nanite co2 scrubbers and o2 generators impregnated into the material ?
TAS showed us a perfectly consistent use of forcefield technology: it keeps air in and conforms to the body, so why not pack it in your belt? And while it does little to stop phaser beams or hard physical impact, it does appear to provide some protection against gradual pressure, and perhaps against some types of radiation as well. Those belts might well still be standard gear comparable to life vests, only miniaturized a tad (in ST:TMP, they seemed to have shrunk to belt buckle size already!). But you don't go combat diving or oil platform repairing in a life jacket: you also have to pack a proper diving suit or survival suit for your daily work. And sometimes it makes good sense to don this gear rather than a life vest when you notice an emergency approaching. As for oxygen supply, we already saw futuristic breathing gear in TOS ("Squire of Gothos"), showing the state of the art in packing the gas and possibly the filters as well. We don't know the underlying mechanisms, but we can safely assume the survival gear would fit inside a cigarette pack in the 24th century. Timo Saloniemi
The entire suit might compact down to the point that it would fit into the helmet for storage. The Tholan Web showed suits with no back pack style life support, Kirk was in space for over a day.
Hilariously, the space suits in Enterprise were more advanced than Voyager's, set 200 years later. In "Minefield" we see Malcolm's ruptured suit seal itself. Really, they had space suits left over from the movie First Contact and so used them. Blame Jonathan Frakes!
I can see having an emergency enviromnental suit as part of your uniform in case of a hull breach and a more protective suit for serious outside work with a propulsion system (not the big thruster-suit thing from TMP but perhaps miniature tractor fields and maneuvering jets. If I have to go outside to fix a part of the ship damaged then I would prefer to be protected by more than a glowy belt. The Voyager had two hexagonal hatched in the underside of the primary hull- those were for 'Bottle Suits' which have not been seen on screen. IIRC Probert designed them for TNG (along with a bunch of other service hardware) but they never got used. The 'Belt Buckles' in TMP uniforms were some sort of Biorhythm controllers to help keep the crew at optimum efficiency, hence the three stacked detail pieces on the front.
Biorhythms were the rage when TMP came out, and the souvenir program sold in theaters at the time made mention of the belt buckles for that.
Yeah I loved the first contact space suit scenes so I wouldn't want to change that. I'm mostly thinking of the times when the ship ruptures and some people get pulled out into space which seems to happen a lot (ST:Nemesis, Into Darkness, Harry Kim in that voyager episode). Hopefully Starfleet isn't just writing those guys off as acceptable losses
They did do something like that in the Voyager Video Game "Elite Forces". The Uniform was hardened, and the Transporter buffer the suit contained allowed you to keep the helmet in the buffer in case you need it. Helmet materialized, you put it on and seal it and you can do everything those First Contact Suits could. I loved the Hazard Team suits lol
I like the suits. They're clearly the FC suits, but that's okay, since I liked those suits. Personally, if I'm stuck out in the middle of space, a bulky space suit might make me feel a little better, rather than if the suit were some kind of skin tight minimalist business. I want as much padding and protection possible between myself and the vacuum of space.
Not wear a suit that's bulky? Really I think it is not the age for that. Maybe 1500 years hence when the baldy makes an appearance they would have form fitting outer-space wear. How do the writers get ideas for what would have been space-suits? Look at the Mayan, Indonesian, Phoenician glyphs and the gods that came from the sky riding big birds.