Astronaut tees off in space
Thursday, 23 Nov 2006 10:03
Artist's impression of the shot
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Astronauts found time during their spacewalk yesterday to play some golf amongst the serious repair work to the International Space Station.
Lead spacewalker flight engineer Mikhail Tyurin played a one-handed shot that Nasa claims "merited a high-flying birdie rating".
The activity was part of a commercial agreement with a Canadian golf company through a contract with the Russian Federal Space Agency.
Commander Mike Lopez-Alegria set up the tee on the ladder next to the hatch of the Pirs docking department before Tyurin stepped up to play his one-handed shot.
It is thought that the golf ball, which weighs the same as three paperclips - far less than the standard 45g golf balls on Earth – will stay in orbit for three days before entering the Earth's atmosphere and burning up.
Speaking in an interview before the stunt took place, Mr Tyurin said: "I play ice hockey and my understanding is that it is very similar."
Golf balls have been hit in space before; during the Apollo 14 mission astronaut Alan Shephard fitted an eight iron head to the handle of a lunar sample collection device and launched three golf balls on the moon.