Ask Mike: Golfing on the moon
Hey Guys,
If you were stuck on the moon and could only bring one CD to listen to, what would it be? What about reading material? Which book would you bring along? Astronaut Alan Shepard faced a similar question when he was heading up to the moon on the Apollo 14 mission in 1971. Only instead of books or albums, Shepard had to decide what golf club to bring.
I wasn’t around when Admiral Shepard walked on the moon, but I remember hearing stories of him setting up a camera on the moon’s surface and hitting a few golf balls. It got me wondering, what club did he use?
A random question to spend my time answering? Absolutely, but you never know what you’re gonna find on the Web until you look. A few weeks ago, I looked into what I thought was going to be a relatively easy answer on how who coined the phrase, “The dog ate my homework.” My research skills were quickly humbled, as I was unable to find any reliable answers.
This time, it was quite the opposite. I thought, “There is no way I’m gonna find out what golf club an astronaut used four decades ago,” but not only was the answer out there, I found the video of Shepard swinging away. If you listen carefully, you can hear him mention that he’s using a six iron.
Due to the bulkiness and inflexibility of his space suit, Shepard had to golf one handed. Upon hitting the second golf ball, he joked that it went “for miles and miles.” According to Wikipedia, Shepard later admitted that the ball likely flew between 200 and 400 yards. Not shabby until you consider that the moon has one-sixth the gravity of planet Earth.
In his later years, people would often ask Shepard about his lunar golf swing. He wasn’t sure if the golf balls would be preserved on the moon for future generations, or if, due to vast swings in temperature, they exploded. Interestingly, according to Sports Illustrated, Shepard never revealed what brand of golf balls he used, for fear that his famous swing would be inadvertently commercialized. Again, according to SI, Shepard knew that his having hit golf balls on the moon is what made him famous. “I’m probably a hell of a lot more famous for being the guy who hit the golf ball on the moon than as the first guy in space,” he said.
As for the six iron, it’s on display at the USGA Museum in Far Hills, New Jersey. Astute viewers will note that Shepard sawed off the club and attached it to a sample collection tool in order to bring it with him to the moon. A good golfer knows how to improvise.
Thanks for reading,
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The moon looks scary. Imagine living with utter darkness around you.
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I prefer Earth. ^^
well i would take my iphone and download all the songs i could ever want to the ipod on it, then download apps of all the books i wanted, and if i had got enough cash to go golfing on the moon, i would be able to afford them all wouldnt i?
so really, im pretty well off!
The Police’s Greatest Hits….tiny steps are what you take, walking on the moon…if I was on the dark side, would I be seeing an invisible sun? Might even leave a message in a bottle. Ok I’m done.
CD: I’d bring Pink Floyd’s “Dark side of the moon”, of course!
Book: Well, I guess “The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” might come in handy. It may not get me back to Earth, but I’d be laughing as I froze to death!
By the way, Alan Shepard was NOT the first human in space; that title goes to Soviet cosmonaut Yuri A. Gagarin on April 12th, 1961- a full eight years before the first moon landing. Shepard was the first person to walk on the moon.
wow i would just bring my house onto the space shuttle.
3rd
Mike, interesting question. Definitely a fun theoretical question. I like the answer regarding the downloads on the ipod idea.
Now, my practical side answer. Since there is no electricity on the moon, how do we power up? Batteries? Assuming we are using “NASA-style” products because any other device would render useless due to the massive dust particles, zero gravity, plus it is soo cold on the moon, everything would freeze.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/07/0714_040714_moonfacts.html
http://www.moonconnection.com/moon_facts.phtml
I think I’ll just hang out here on Earth and help answer more questions on Y!A.
~Net Advisor™
I was around when this happened, and I remember it well. Also, during the 1960′s, I read a book in which Sheppard described his love for golf, and his desire to swing a golf club on the moon, if he ever got there. So this event was well thought out and planned, and was very eagerly anticipated.
Hi i would take my laptop and fill it up with loads of music and talking books and happy me
I had the privilege of meeting with Shepard’s lunar mission partner, Edgar Mitchell, a few months ago. He takes pride in that his improvised “javelin” (a spare handle; the moon walking part of the mission was over) went a wee bit further than Shepard’s golf ball did. And there are pictures to prove it.
Thats an easy one Wish you where here Pink Floyd
Kirby, I hope you also bring a really long extension cord to keep your iphone charged.
i woulnt bring any cd cuse i have my i-pod
It may depend what genre you are interested in at the time, themes to do with the Moon compilation,
CD 1: Audrey Hepburn – Moon River,
CD 2: Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon,
CD 3: Trooper – Live from the Moon,
CD 4: Cat Stevens – Moonshadow,
CD >: …
Reading material could also be Moon related, Fiction, Non-fiction, Astrology, and a Survival Book for Spacious Environments,
For movies, either set up permanent satellite dish, and watch distant reruns,
Space: The Imagination Station
NASA TV
or Moon & Space related dvd’s
Space 1999: Moon Base Alpha
Star Trek(s)
Apollo 13
It would be nice to have a ISS type Space station to Start with, Partly underground, Life support system,
have a nice day
I bet he used a Titleist…
But I would take my laptop to see what you respond to this.
I would take Kid Cudi’s Man on the Moon album, and for reading material i would take In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust
Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ – naturally – what else would you need?
i would bring michael jackson’s thriller XD and twilight, new moon, eclipse, and breaking dawn. and possibly all the eragon books, lol.
(btw, while listnen 2 mj, i’d probably monwalk on the moon, rofl
well i would take my iphone and download all the songs i could ever want to the ipod on it, then download apps of all the books i wanted, and if i had got enough cash to go golfing on the moon, i would be able to afford them all wouldnt i?
Hmmm. No one called out ddferrari on his/her goof?
Yes, Yuri Gagarin was the first man in space (The Russians beat us with the first woman, also: Valentina Tereshkova. But Alan Shepard was NOT the first to walk on the moon. That was Neil Armstrong. Shepard was the first American in space, however.