Paragon Space Development creates systems to support human life in space's extreme conditions. They're working with NASA and SpaceX to sustain humans longer space.

Though SpaceX launched just a couple of weeks ago, the mission has only just begun.

Grant Andersonis the president and CEO of Paragon Space Development. His company, headquartered in Tucson, Arizona, works with NASA, SpaceX, Boeing and other companies, providing vital life-sustaining technology for astronauts.

With the successful launch of SpaceX, his team is opening a whole new chapter on space exploration and how to sustain humans on longer missions.

Exploration is human, its in our DNA, said Anderson.

Now that the U.S. is beginning a new space frontier, Anderson and his team are helping make it all possible.

Though Anderson says many don't ask, how come I dont hear about life support," in space, he says though it's vital, it's because "its hard to make it sexy.

In order to send astronauts like Doug Hurley and Robert Behnken to space and beyond, they need technology to help them live and breathe in space. Anderson says without life support technology, there simply is no mission.

This isn't your ordinary life support measures found on Earth. Paragon creates life support in extreme environments, and space is the ultimate extreme environment.

Our job is to make it so the astronauts are always comfortable, Anderson said.

Paragon has several life-sustaining systems for space.

One system includes a new spacesuit that gives astronauts an extra hour of oxygen and more mobility. Another system converts water, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide creating recyclable oxygen.

Overall the systems work collectively to make breathing, sleeping, living, working and even going to the bathroom in space possible. Thats important when astronauts could be in space for days, months, even years.

With the success of SpaceX, it opens the door for the next realm to explore that Paragon will be working on with NASA.

Space is just one big ocean and were ready to go out and see whats out there, Anderson said.

There's a goal of creating a sustained human presence on the moon by 2024, then going even further, sending astronauts to Mars, marking another giant leap for mankind.

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Life support tech company helping pave way for future of space exploration - FirstCoastNews.com WTLV-WJXX