My sister is visiting up here at the moment and she won a basketball at a local church event yesterday. She is planning on taking it back home with her as a carry on when she leaves, but is concerned about whether the ball (which is inflated) would pop on the plane due to changes in air pressure. I have no idea if anything would happen.

Any thoughts?

Thank you in advance.

I have no experience, so don't take my word too seriously, but...
in my opinion, the basketball will not pop as the change in air pressure in the pressurized passenger cabin isn't that great. The basketball skin is pretty thick.
Violins, when travelling on airplanes, usually have their "E" strings loosened a little as that may pop, but usually all my string come out fine even when I forget to do anything. I'm not even sure if the string pops because of air pressure or change in temperature.
But as I said, no guarantees here!

I would guess a basketball would be safe because cans of pop do just fine and their seals are weaker than a basketball.... at least I would think so. If your sister is that concerned, she can deflate the ball or at least let a little air out prior to boarding. Also, if it is going to be an issue I would imagine the FA would advise her and request she deflate the ball prior to take off.

Alison

I can assure you that it will be fine even as cargo. You don't think NBA teams deflate and inflate dozens of balls on each trip do you?

iirc, cabin pressure is generally set at around 8,000 ft, which isn't all that high (many ski resorts are at or above that altitude). moreover, since pressure decreases as you go up, there would be less strain on the ball; she might run into problems if she wanted to take the ball on a submarine voyage though.

The basketball itself will be fine. However, TSA regulations prohibit dribbling, slam-dunks, and the setting of picks.

How about traveling?

This is not correct--the atmospheric pressure outside the ball decreases at higher altitudes, while the pressure inside the ball stays the same, so the pressure differential (which is what matters for the basketball's structural integrity) goes up.

Having said that, let's look at the numbers. A basketball is typically inflated to a "gauge pressure" (pressure differential with respect to the prevailing atmospheric conditions) of about 7 to 9 psi (pounds per square inch; apologies to those of you who use sensible units). At sea level, the absolute atmospheric pressure is about 15 psi; it goes down to 10.5 psi at 9000 feet, which would be a typical cabin altitude. That means the gauge pressure of the basketball would go up by 4.5 psi, or about 50%. I don't know what kind of safety factor they build into basketballs, but you might be pushing it. I would let some air out of the ball if I were you.

Picks are fine as long as they are not moving picks.

Yogurt containers do just fine on a plane (just be sure, when at altitude, to open them away from you!) Not a physics expert here, so....is that the same idea?

Yep, exactly the same principle.

While the above analysis is correct, I would bet a large amount of money that a basketball's margin of error is greater than 4-5 psi. The dynamic pressure spike of a good, hard dribble, let alone sitting or stepping on a ball, probably generates pressure peaks much higher than seen on a plane.

Compared to some of the stuff I have seen carried on, including giant picture frames, golf clubs, cases of wine, I doubt there will be any issue.

albatross

Alternatively, punch a small hole in the top with the tine of a fork. That relieves the pressure without spraying in any direction at all. Same for containers of salad dressing or anything else.

I had to read that twice before I figured out that you were not referring to the basketball!