“I don't know whether I prefer AstroTurf to grass. I never smoked AstroTurf."
Joe Namath, American football quarterback
James Faria and Robert Wright were researchers' at Monsanto, Inc., in the United States when they invented AstroTurf. Originally called Chemgrass, this artificial grass for sports and playing fields was first installed in 1964 at Moses Brown School in Providence, Rhode Island. Monsanto adopted the name AstroTurf after the product was installed at Houston Astrodome stadium in 1966. It was patented in 1967.
The first AstroTurf, a short-pile carpet of nylon, was harder than real-grass and caused serious injuries to players. Several English League soccer teams adopted AstroTurf in the 1980s, but the clubs quickly returned to natural grass. Recent developments have largely overcome these problems. The addition of sand or rubber infill, superior backing, and nylon yarn fibers have made it as safe as normal grass.
The newest version of AstroTurf, the so-called "third-generation" product, consists of green blades of polyethylene that resemble grass, mixed with small pieces of black rubber that make the playing surface very springy. Despite the bouncing of the rubber pieces around the players' feet, playing on third- generation AstroTurf is closely comparable to playing on grass—but without the mud.
AstroTurf has transformed the maintenance of sports grounds throughout the world. Unlike natural grass, it requires no watering, making it suitable for hot climates, and obviously there is no need to mow or roll it. Its development has also meant that many sports that were only playable outside—such as baseball— could be brought into indoor stadiums for occasions such as professional-level matches.
