Alan Shepard, Apollo 14 and Amazing Shots From 50 Years. Now science explains how far it went – Corriere.it

WWII survivor (Pacific side), Alan Bartlett Shepherd was the first American to travel in space. That was 1961 and he did that for the Mercury Project. Not only. He was also the first to play golf on the moon, after 10 years, as captain of the Apollo 14 mission, Thus you realize,As US President George Clinton said at a later timeAnd the “The dream of every golfer.” February 6, 1971: Today is 50 years old. Data in hand, he was the fifth man on the moon, but he was also the oldest person to walk on it (born November 18, 1923, age 47), but only after he did Resorting to surgery To solve a problem that would never allow him to do all this: Illuminating disease. A disease that affects the inner ear and causes dizziness, nausea, and tinnitus (ringing in the ears). All unpleasant symptoms during space flight (and not only).

“Secret” balls

Going back 50 years, the mission went down in history due to Shepherd’s decision to play golf. The wand was a handle used to collect moon samples. The two balls were carried in secret And they proved useful in understanding the force of lunar gravity, despite Shepherd’s admission that he plowed the Earth rather than hitting the ball decently. But how did it really go? Photographer Andy Saunders studied the photos and videos of the time and was able to find both Shepherd balls. According to Saunders, it is possible, thanks to low gravity, that The powerful ball can stay in the air for a minute and 22 seconds before backing backIt covers the entire length of the golf course of more than five kilometers. Shepherd reached 37 meters with the second throw, while the ball went bad with the first ball: 21 meters.

Wonderful gesture

At that time, the Good Shepherd – who died on July 21, 1998 – could not determine the distance he had reached: The second ball? Travel miles and milesHe joked. Scientifically, Saunders explained the question as follows: “The moon is a giant Swiss cheese, not combed and strewn with rocks. Compression suits severely restrict movement, and due to helmet masks, the astronauts could barely see their feet. I challenge any golfer to do better than Shepherd in those circumstances. Just the fact that he managed to hit the ball and make it that small distance is really impressive. ” Indeed, this gesture, no matter how extraordinary, has remained in history.