EVA
Abbreviation with 3 meanings
| Stands for | Extravehicular activity |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 3 |
| Categories | Science & Engineering, Business & Finance |
EVA has three meanings. The most common are Extravehicular activity (astronomy & Space) and Ethylene-vinyl acetate (chemistry); it can also stand for Economic value added.
Meanings of EVA at a glance
| # | EVA stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Extravehicular activity | Science & Engineering › Astronomy & Space |
| 2 | Ethylene-vinyl acetate | Science & Engineering › Chemistry |
| 3 | Economic value added | Business & Finance › Finance |
1. Extravehicular activity
Science & Engineering · Astronomy & Space Abbreviations
Any activity by an astronaut outside a spacecraft, commonly called a spacewalk in orbit or a moonwalk on the lunar surface. EVAs are used to assemble and repair stations, service telescopes and conduct experiments, and they typically last six to eight hours.
Example: The two astronauts completed a six-and-a-half-hour EVA to install new solar arrays on the ISS.
Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov made the first spacewalk on March 18, 1965, and Ed White the first American one that June. The first commercial spacewalk took place during SpaceX's Polaris Dawn mission in September 2024. In materials science EVA means ethylene-vinyl acetate.
2. Ethylene-vinyl acetate
Science & Engineering · Chemistry Abbreviations
Soft, rubbery copolymer used for shoe midsoles, flip-flops, yoga mats, craft foam sheets, hot-melt glue sticks and the encapsulant that bonds solar cells inside panels. Varying the vinyl acetate content tunes it from flexible plastic to rubber-like foam.
Example: Running shoes with EVA midsoles are lighter but compress faster than rubber-soled designs.
Cosplayers use EVA foam sheets to build armor because the material can be heat-formed and carved. Clear EVA film laminated around photovoltaic cells keeps out moisture for decades. In spaceflight EVA means extravehicular activity, or spacewalk, an unrelated meaning.
3. Economic value added
Business & Finance · Finance Abbreviations
Measure of the profit a company earns above the full cost of all its capital, calculated as NOPAT minus WACC multiplied by invested capital. A positive EVA indicates genuine value creation for shareholders rather than just accounting profit.
Example: With NOPAT of $150 million and a capital charge of $120 million, the division generated $30 million of EVA.
EVA is a trademark associated with the consulting firm Stern Stewart & Co., which popularized it in the 1990s; the underlying idea is often called economic profit or residual income. Coca-Cola under Roberto Goizueta was among the companies that tied management incentives to it.
Related abbreviations
More astronomy & Space abbreviations
- ELT – Extremely Large Telescope
- ESA – European Space Agency
- ESO – European Southern Observatory
- ET – Extraterrestrial
- FAST – Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope
- FRB – Fast radio burst
- GEO – Geostationary orbit
- GRB – Gamma-ray burst
See all 83 astronomy & Space abbreviations →