New Podcast Episode: Kicking it Into Orbit
Henry Hanson, an adidas engineer and lead investigator on multiple ISS National Lab-sponsored projects.
Media Credit: Henry Hanson
What does the International Space Station (ISS) have to do with the world's most popular sport? More than you might think.
September 30, 2026
The latest episode of Between a Rocket & a Hard Space, the official podcast of the ISS National Laboratory®, explores how research conducted in microgravity helped inform the development of the adidas soccer ball that took center stage during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
In the episode, ISS National Lab Public Affairs and Outreach Lead Patrick O’Neill sits down with Henry Hanson, an adidas engineer and lead investigator on multiple ISS National Lab-sponsored projects. Together, they discuss the company’s work studying soccer ball aerodynamics and spin dispersion in the unique environment of microgravity. Insights from that research provided valuable data that helped adidas better understand how soccer balls move through the air and contributed to the development of the ball that was used on soccer’s biggest stage.
The conversation offers a fascinating look at how space-based research can extend far beyond traditional space applications. By leveraging the ISS National Lab, companies like adidas can gather data that is difficult, and in some cases impossible, to obtain on Earth, helping drive innovation in unexpected ways.
Listen to the latest episode featuring Henry Hanson and discover how research conducted hundreds of miles above Earth helped shape the soccer ball for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
