Chess match between Earth and Space is going on for about a month, courtesy of the US Chess Federation (USCF) and NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). The Earth is represented by the present USCF K-3 champions, the members of Stevenson Elementary School chess club in Bellevue, Washington, and the online readers of the Earth vs. Space Chess Match 2008 website who can vote for every move proposed by the young students. Astronaut Greg Chamitoff of the ISS Expedition 17 team, who is currently travelling above and around his earthy chess opponents at five miles a second, plays the delegate of Space.

The Earth vs. Space chess match started out on September 29. Spaceman Chamitoff made the first move, 1. d4 on his Velcro fastened chessboard. Assisted by about 700 voters, Stevenson’s chess team has chosen to respond with a 1… Ng8-Nf6, which was followed a spacey 2. Ng1-f3. Most of the earthy public voted for 2… d7-d5 as the ultimate respond for Chamitoff’s second move, and after strolling more than 210 miles above Earth, Chamitoff had found the time to float around the chessboard to play the London System, which was answered by his eager opponents with a 3… c7-c5.

White’s 4. e3, was responded with Black’s 4…Nb8-c6; playing his 5th move, White-Chamitoff had deviated from the common lines of the London System and went for a risky 5. Bb5, which was responded due to the majority of votes with a 5…Qd8-a5+. Next up, White had managed to block the expected check and protect his queenside bishop by playing 6. Nc3. This time, there were almost no arguments that Black should go for the aggressive respond and play 6…Nf6-e4.

White followed the Earth’s attack with a 7. Bxc6+, checking Black’s king while in the meantime neglecting his pinned knight. Having no alternatively, Stevenson chess club responded immediately 7… bxc6. Greg Chamitoff from up above responded with a castling, and the young chess champions, assisted by the public’s votes, replied with the capture of the c3 knight. Once again, Chamitoff surprised his opponents by pinning the knight, so the opponents answered with a 9…Nc3-e2+.

And so, after a month of this chess playing, consulting and voting routine, the Earth vs. Space chess game, Space is threatened with a check. Stevenson Elementary School chess team seem optimistic about the continuation of the chess game, believing that their last desperado maneuver will have a prolonging impact on the next moves to come.