Sports in Space
Troy Morris, Director of Operations
6 minute read
Whether you’re a deep fan of science fiction, and the many fantastical games presented in it, or a more terrestrially focused sports fan, the idea of taking our hobbies to other places closely follows humankind’s interest in exploration. Often these thoughts coalesce into questions like: why only go to the moon when you could also whack a golf ball on the lunar surface? What would track & field be like on bodies with differing gravity? How would it be to play laser tag with 6 degrees of freedom in zero gravity? While humanity currently has limited practice with sports in space, it is an interesting thought whether your favorites win or lose at the next game.
Referencing the NFL season finale Super Bowl, NASA has a happy history of comparing the big game to the big things happening in space, most impressively with an annual interlay of the ISS over a football field, reaching easily from goal post to goal post. But more than just comparing a manicured field to a massive international science station, there are efforts underway to take sports off-Earth, with some early entries in humanity’s exploration history.
Famous among sports and space for a few reasons, the first American astronaut Alan Shepard had an additional claim to fame on Feb 6, 1971. Commander Shepard used a modified sample tool as a crude golf club, and from a stiff spacesuit (with only one hand), was able to hit a first and second golf ball from a daunting sandtrap, the surface of the Moon, as a closing task to the Apollo 14 mission. The TV camera recorded his modified moves, and his estimate for that second shot had it going, "Miles and miles and miles," though researchers have given a more accurate measurement since.
Interestingly, this wasn’t the only athletic feat on the Moon, even that very day! Apollo 14 Lunar Module Pilot Ed Mitchell was able to complete his own feat, a javelin throw, leading to his claim of the 1st Lunar Olympics. While humanity is progressing toward returning to the Moon, the Artemis mission isn’t the only effort that might see the 2nd Lunar Olympics. One of the most focused efforts for driving new sports in space is the educational Space Games Federation, which among many other efforts is working out what events the first ‘astroletes’ will compete in, hopefully with more success than seen in 1971.
While I’m neither an expert in astrophysics nor sports science, the draw of a series of games calls back to ancient athletes and the terrestrial Olympic Games. Many of these events would have interesting dynamics off-Earth, whether in an artificial atmosphere and microgravity, a self-contained space suit on a surface, or an enclosed play area on an orbital body (with the interesting effects of non-Earth gravity but no limits due to survival equipment). Of the many events to consider, my favorite traditional events to investigate would include track events of sprints, distance, and hurdles, with field events of the high jump, pole vault, and shot put. Despite the historical first throw, the javelin is an event I’d recommend excluding as terrestrial athletes have progressed so far in ability that limiting specifications have been introduced for safety. One of many concepts, safety first is a stalwart standard to continue into space.
As these events would struggle, or be nearly limitless, with a lack of gravity, it’s best to consider them occurring on an orbital body. As Apollo 14 showed, space suits limit a human’s athletic performance. With these assumptions, and a large enough station on the moon, Mars, or the punishing gravity of Jupiter, there would be some interesting expected outcomes. With Earth’s 9.8 m/s2 gravity as the standard, denoted as 1g, it’s important to note that as the mass of those objects varies, so does their gravity. A lunar sports stadium would experience 1.62 m/s2 (0.1654g), with a Martian stadium existing with 3.711 m/s2 (0.38g), and a Jovian station at 24.79 m/s2 (2.528g). At these forces, the easiest to assume impact would likely be the shot put. On the moon and Mars, we would expect to see farther throws from even the most junior of athletes. On Jupiter though, humans would struggle in any action, let alone the spinning balance and well-timed toss of throwing a heavy object, likely limiting the distance achieved. However, if humans were able to stay long-term and train on Jupiter, under that gravity or lesser, they might appear as superhumans, in an exaggerated difference beyond the high altitude training of today.
Other field events could become comical in lower gravities, with pole vault and high jump requiring extremely high ceilings, once the astrolete’s figure out the proper running form. Even more so than shot put, these events might be nearly impossible under Jovian gravity, and would likely be put off for relatively easier-to-attempt feats, like the hurdles. While a track event, the coordination and timing of elite hurdlers would be put to the test under the two-and-a-half times gravity of Jupiter. Back on the Martian or lunar stadiums, the high power of these athletes would require restraint for speed, as too much time floating in the air is a loss of traction forward, or larger hurdles to account for human’s longer leaps!
This draws to the start of the traditional events to consider: track sprints and distance runs. As mentioned, coordinating proper movement (without bulky suits) would lead to unusual-looking techniques as astroletes cross the finish line on the Moon or Mars. With significant training, Jovian sprints might see similar or improved times to Earth as the competitors are driven into the track, though the exhaustion of that anaerobic activity is painful even in contemplation. Additionally, a Jupiter distance run, or marathon, might become the new upper limit and final testament to training, much as modern ultramarathons and Ironman triathlons are for today’s athletes. Meanwhile on the moon, these long distances might be an annoyance and test of patience with the bounding movements developed during the Apollo explorations. Even as Mars can provide over twice the gravity of the Moon, either might make poor contenders for a solar system show of speed.
Beyond these individual events, as modern sports have expanded so too will the future of sports, on this planet or another. Team sports like hockey, football (soccer for Americans), American football, baseball, volleyball, basketball, and more have interesting dynamics off planet. Without the gravity-induced arc in trajectory of an object in microgravity, or a reduced one in low gravity games, any pass or shot would be like a whole ‘nother world. With revised tactics like reduced long passes, both forms of football could succeed, though baseball might become unwieldy with long drives and high-speed impacts. Volleyball and basketball alike would be nearly impossible in microgravity, but have elements more akin to badminton when played on the Moon or Mars. All of these on Jupiter would be like playing with weighted medicine balls, an unlikely desire for entertainment or safety. Hockey, as a gravity-favored sport, would be an interesting dynamic in marginal Martian or the massive Jovian arenas. Assuming ice skates function similarly in other gravities, a Mars-based hockey game could see careful considerations as any movement is exaggerated without the driving force of gravity to assist. Equally, a Jupiter ice rink could be higher speeds due to inertia, and more energy in any impact. Whether brutal or beautiful, other-world hockey begins to challenge the idea of these well-favored games.
Additionally on that point, the idea of microgravity American football gives the ideas of 3D plays, with a plane of scrimmage rather than a line as we have on Earth. Would an offensive line be able to maintain a bubble for a quarterback rather than just a pocket? How does a coach draft plays across not just two dimensions but all three? This draws interesting ideas of games, and begins to visualize something more akin to science fiction than what many millions will be watching on Sunday.
In the world of science fiction there are nearly endless games, as there are nearly endless stories. One of note for taking place in microgravity is the Battle School competitive simulations of Ender’s Game. Both in the book and film, this free-floating environment allows tactics in multiple axes, beyond the gravity-bound restraints on Earth. Incorporating a freeze-ray form of laser tag, the game is merely one aspect of the training received by the eponymous Ender and his peers. From my perspective, this 6 degree of freedom battleground becomes an overtly militaristic endgame of developing a microgravity version of American football, itself a not-so-subtle stand-in of military strategy, with territory to defend, captains calling orders, and even features a storied competition between our nation’s military academies.
The draw of space and sports will continue to attract those seeking challenge, glory, and the chance to push themselves. Whether on this planet, another, or somewhere in between, the risk will be calculated against the rewards, the entertainment balanced against the energy to achieve it. So while the ads of this year might mention space (again), it’s seemingly only a matter of time before sports go with humanity into the final frontier.
Recommended column to read next: Why We Choose to Go to Space: Human Continuity