Badminton in Zero Gravity – Possible Sport for Space Colonies But Equipment Upgrades Needed

In many Asian nations badminton is a favorite sport – it is fast, requires skill, and the most agile players become the champions. There is no doubt as many Asian nations are planning private space enterprises, and orbiting space stations and space hotels that someday in the future they will take badminton to space. But when they do there are some things we need to consider, for instance playing badminton in zero gravity will be much different than it is here on Earth.A short time ago I was discussing this with a fellow think tanker, and we believe there is a way solve the challenges associated with zero gravity for this sport. It will take a little bit of ingenuity and reengineering of the sports equipment that is used to play the game, but we think it’s doable. First of all we envision reverse propellers to prevent the birdie from flying away. The birdie will have sensors inside which will take into consideration the speed, velocity, and kinetic energy which has been applied by the player as they hit it.Then as the birdie flies forward, it will adjust its flight trajectory to that of a 1G atmosphere using a small propeller inside and steering the birdie back to what its normal trajectory would’ve been here on Earth. Now then, there is another problem and that has to do with the people playing the game, or the athletes, namely the challenge of them floating away themselves in zero-gravity.It will be very hard for them to move side to side or backwards and forwards in zero gravity. However if they are playing on a somewhat uneven surface, but a surface that is somewhat predictable they can push off sideways with their feet and move quickly. We had also considered using magnetic shoes and a metallic surface for the court. That’s another potential solution.Badminton just won’t be as fun if the game is slowed down because the players cannot move as briskly, or because the birdie floats away. To keep the game fast and fun, the equipment will have to be modified, and because it won’t be perfect, the players are going to need to adapt. It will be fun to watch the first badminton contests at a space hotel competition or tournament.In fact, I have no doubt that people will be filming all this with their iPhone 12′s and sending those videos back to Google’s holographic YouTube video depository. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this and think on it. If you have any comments, concerns, and/or questions please shoot me an e-mail.