Alan Shepard, an astronaut from America, a businessman, a test pilot, and aviator, was one of the those American pioneers who travelled to space in 1961 and turned out to be one of the few humans who walked on the moon when NASA launched Apollo 14 in 1971. But, in this account, there is one very vibrant, weird moment that places Shepard apart as an astronaut: he played golf on the moon!
The Concept: Golf on the Moon
It started off as a joke on hitting a golf ball on the moon. Bob Hope was visiting a NASA facility one day during the early 1960s. As the comedian Bob Hope made quips, one of the quips he made happened to be about hitting a golf ball on the moon. While this was said in jest, it hung in the mind of Shepard, who was known for his personality.
Since astronauts were no longer explorers but science ambassadors to the public, Shepard felt that this publicity stunt was going to attract even much more public eye in the exploration of space. He was going to hit golf balls on the moon using makeshift equipment.
Convincing NASA
Shepard knew he had to convince the leadership of NASA so that he would be allowed to carry out the plan. Initially, NASA director Bob Gilruth did not want him to do it because it would, in some way, dilute the seriousness of the mission. In turn, Shepard promised to perform the prank only after all critical scientific tasks of the mission had been conducted and so there would not be a chance it might threaten the success of the mission. He says, he would do it as a "harmless caper that won't distract anyone from what they're doing.". Finally, Gilruth yielded to the persistence of Shepard, but only under severe conditions .
The Historic Moment
At the end of the Apollo 14 mission on February 6, 1971, having accomplished everything on the list, Shepard pulled out a makeshift six-iron-a golf club he had stashed onboard and a few golf balls. Wearing his cumbersome lunar suit, which made it nearly impossible to swing, he took his shots.
Without Earth's gravitational pull, the phrase from the legendary John Glenn was heard as he proclaimed it traveled "miles and miles and miles." While in truth, it travelled only about 200 yards, farther than any shot on Earth because of the moon's lower gravity and zero atmospheric resistance.
Why It Matteres
Sheperd's moon golf stunt is remembered not only as a funny moment but also as reflective of the human spirit—our capacity to hunt for adventure and fun in the impossible and the unlikely places. And, for some time, it was also a way of humanizing astronauts to show how these very serious astronauts, flying on historic missions, were human too and could appreciate the moment of levity.
Legacy
The great moment of space history Alan Shepard took as an opportunity to have a lunar golf stunt. Taking a little bit of earth's favorite game with him to the moon, it simply mixed exploration with expression and creativeness and fun; this continues to be an interesting reminder that even amongst groundbreaking scientific achievements, there is room for a little light-heartedness.
References:
