In a new report coming from NASA's auditor, the space agency's space suit supply looks very bleak. What's worst is that NASA is still years away from having new space suits ready for very expensive space missions, even though the agency has already invested close to $200 million on space suit development ever since 2007.

According to The Verge, NASA seems to also be running out of space suits for the astronauts working at the International Space Station. As of the moment, only a fraction of the original space suit supply for the ISS is fully functional, and NASA is alarmed that it may possibly not having enough space suits to last throughout the entire duration of the ISS program, which currently scheduled up to 2024.

These problems, which has been outlined by NASA's Office of Inspector General (OIG), could potentially turn into a major problem for NASA as it continues to aspire its long-term human exploration plans. Right now, NASA's main goal is to begin building and establish a human outpost in the space near the Moon by the year 2020s, where astronauts can fully live and train for future deep-space missions.

Afterward, in the 2030s and beyond, the first ever Mars astronauts will leave from this outpost and will be making their way towards the Red Planet. With all that being said, space suits are going to be a critical part of turning NASA's plans into reality.

According to Engadget, space suits allow crew members to venture outside the station to work or repair, and they will also certainly be needed to keep astronauts alive when on the surface of Mars. However, depending on the destination, different types of space suits will definitely be needed.

Mars, for instance, possesses different temperatures, radiation, and gravity levels than the space around the Moon. With this, various types of suits must be made to accommodate these differing conditions.

Hopefully, NASA could find a way to solve the scarcity of space suits. The space agency is also hoping that they would be able to address the problem ASAP and not let it alter their already-marked schedules.

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