“We love you Felix!” screamed the crowd gathered in a mission control setting at his launch site in Roswell, New Mexico as more than 8 million people watched his feat onli ne.īaumgartner’s body pierced the atmosphere at 833.9 miles per hour (1, 3 42.8 kph), a ccording to p reliminary numbers released by Brian Utley, the certification official for the Federation Aeronautic International, at a press conference afterward.īaumgartner’s speed clinched one of his goals: to become the first skydiver to break the s ound barrier, typically measured at more than 690 m ph (1,110 kph). The area is sparsely populated, plus it has some of the worlds best facilities for balloon launches such as this, and the weather allows several good windows for a successful launch.An Austrian daredevil leapt into the stratosphere from a balloon near the edge of space 24 miles (38 km) above Earth on Sunday and safely landed, setting a record for the highest skydive and breaking the sound barrier in the process.Ĭheers broke out as Felix Baumgartner, 43, jumped from a skateboard- sized shelf outside the 11-by-8-foot (3.3-by-2.4 metre) fiberglass and acrylic capsule that was carried higher than 12 8,000 feet (39 ,000 metres) by an enormous balloon. The mission will take place in Roswell New Mexico because of the favorable conditions. The documentary will be produced by the BBC together with the National Geographic channel, with a feature-length film airing on the two channels following the jump. The jump will be recorded for a documentary with 15 cameras onboard the capsule and three cameras on Baumgarters body. In the end, the symptoms developed into panic attacks.īut Baumgarter has been able to overcome the panic attacks and now is moving forward with the preparations for the jump. After all my past exploits, all the extreme things Ive done in my career, no one would have ever guessed that simply wearing a space suit would threaten the mission, me included. We hadnt originally conceived of a test that confined me in the suit for five hours thats how long the entire mission should take with the visor closed. ∺s soon as the visor closes theres this nightmarish silence and loneliness the suit signifies imprisonment. When it came to the crucial pressure test at -60☌, under real conditions with pressure and altitude simulated, and surrounded by cameras, air force personnel and scientists, I realized I just couldnt do it, Baumgarter said in an article in the Red Bulletin.īaumgartner said he thought the suit should feel like second skin but instead he felt like his movements and perceptions were restricted. Baumgartner revealed that in December 2010 during first pressure tests of the suit, he had a panic attack, an event which he called the worst moment of his life. The delay may have been a good thing, however. Hogan filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the energy drink company, but the two parties settled out of court. The lawsuit that halted the jump was made by Daniel Hogan, who claimed he pitched the idea of breaking the 50-year old freefall record to Red Bull in 2004, and that Red Bull said they werent interested, but later, the company went forward with the idea. Red Bull Stratos team members say the mission will explore the limits of the human body in one of the most hostile environments known to humankind, in the attempt to deliver valuable lessons in human endurance and high-altitude technology. The Red Bull Stratos mission is named after the energy drink company that is sponsoring the jump by the renowned Austrian skydiver. Kittinger has been working with Baumgartner to help him prepare for the jump. There have been several attempts to surpass Kittingers record, but none have succeeded, and people have given their lives for the quest. His jump contributed valuable data that provided ground work for spacesuit technology and knowledge about human physiology for the US space program. Credit: Red Bull Stratosīack in 1960, a US Air Force captain named Joe Kittinger made aerospace history by making a jump from 31,000 meters (102,800 feet) in what was called project Excelsior.
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