The 100m world champion will never run on water on Earth, but scientists say lower gravity could make it possible.
American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson has stunned the world with her lightning-quick times on the track, but emerging science tells us that her talents could be a lot more astronomical than that.
Scientists studying the biomechanics of tropical “Jesus lizards,” which are able to run on water, have said that under the right environment, a top-tier sprinter like Richardson can do the same.
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The Central and South American basilisk lizard is only four ounces, yet it can outrun predators by running on rivers and ponds.
It does this by slapping its feet upon the surface, generating upward forces high enough to briefly sustain it.
Scientists from Harvard University, Tom McMahon and Jim Glasheen, originally studied this phenomenon during the 1990s, dividing every splashing stride into three phases: slap, stroke, and recovery.
In the slap phase, the lizard’s foot slaps the water and produces lift.
As it strikes, its swift leg movement creates an air pocket that prevents it from sinking. Last, the recovery phase gets the leg ready for another strike. This process, executed at lightning speed, enables the basilisk to run a few feet before gravity catches up.
Applying these findings to humans, the researchers calculated that a 175-pound runner would need to reach nearly 98 feet per second—about 67 miles per hour—to skate across water on Earth.
That is much quicker than even the quickest sprinters in history. Moreover, the power needed is 15 times greater than what a human can generate.
But in reduced gravity, the impossible starts to look possible. Moons like Mars’s Phobos or Saturn’s Enceladus could provide the reduced gravitational pull needed to tip the scales towards a sprinter’s advantage.
At those scales, an elite-level athlete like Richardson would be able to generate enough power and speed to run on liquid surfaces without going underwater.
Runner’s World, covering the study in May, encapsulated it thus: “Science says no human can run on water on Earth—but physics suggests it might happen somewhere else.”
Lizards, Limits, and Human Potential
The basilisk lizard’s ability remains unique, but its mechanics offer interesting possibilities.
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Through the study of how animals interact with their environment, scientists are made aware of the boundaries of human potential. Richardson will not be racing lakeside any time soon, but the idea that biology and physics could combine to enable it to do so—elsewhere in the universe—is enough to have fans imagining.
For now, the world’s quickest woman remains firmly rooted to the earth. But in the cosmic race of fantasy, she may already have one foot on water.
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