Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment
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A Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment, or LCVG, is a form-fitting garment worn by astronauts in order to maintain a comfortable core body temperature during extra-vehicular activity. The LCVG accomplishes this task by circulating cool water through a network of plastic tubes in direct contact with the astronaut's skin. The water draws heat away from the body, resulting in a lower core temperature.
Because the space environment is essentially a vacuum, heat cannot be lost through heat conduction, and can only be dissipated through thermal radiation, a much slower process. Thus, even though the environment of space can be extremely cold, excessive heat build-up is inevitable. Without an LCVG, there would be no means by which to expel this heat, and it would affect not only EVA performance, but the health of the suit occupant as well.
A Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment is differentiated from a Liquid Cooling Garment by the presence of ventilation ducts, which draw exhaled gas from the suit's extremities and return it to the Primary Life Support System, or PLSS.
