SkyDiver at 130,000 feet today

[Rickwell]

NORTH BATTLEFORD, Saskatchewan - A 64-year-old French skydiver began final preparations for a stunt that will, should all go well, end in the pre-dawn darkness Monday with him rising slowly in a helium-powered balloon pod up to the very void of space — and then stepping off.

Skydiver gears up for record free fall - Space - MSNBC.com

[iMogal]

Unfortunately, the jump was cancelled due to weather... too windy.

[k0NG0]

Totally badass!

[Rickwell]

If Monday's launch is thwarted by the weather, Sommerfeldt said they'll try again Tuesday

[polonyc2]

sounds cool...I wouldn't wanna be the one to try that though

"It is expected to take him 15 minutes just to come down, screaming through thin air at 932 mph an hour (1,500 kilometers per hour) — 1.7 times the speed of sound — smashing through the sound barrier, shock waves buffeting his body, before finally deploying his chute"

[PeterT]

If I was single, no kid and had the training, I would love to do it.

[Ford Freak]

I wonder if this has been done at all since 1960. This should be a world record if it hasn't been done since 1960.

Joseph Kittinger - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[TQ]

Of course some guy from MTV's "Jackass" will have to try it without a chute...

[iMogal]

I'd like to know more about the suit he'll be wearing, and the effects of hitting the sound barrier.

Ever seen the vapour cloud form when a jet passes through it?
Could prove interestings...

[Ford Freak]

I'm curious what they'll do for limiting aircraft traffic.

[ctal]

It strikes me as totally insane, and I'll be surprised if he survives.

According to my quick calculations, based on 1g acceleration of 32 feet per second per second (assuming negligible air resistance during the early part of the jump), he'll reach what they claim will be the peak velocity of 932 mph (= about 1367 feet/second) in 43 seconds, at around 100,000 feet. That is about where Kittinger started his jump in 1960, from where he accelerated to 614 mph according to the Wikipedia article. So the extra 30,000 or so feet of this jump, compared to the 1960 one, will make a huge difference in the velocities that are involved.

The 932 mph figure must assume reentry into the atmosphere with some particular orientation of his body. With essentially no air resistance during the early part of the jump, how is he supposed to keep himself oriented, assuming that he is sufficiently conscious to even try to do so? Does his suit have retro-rockets and a stabilization system? I doubt it.

Both he and the spacesuit will be subject to enormous wind forces, for a long time. One small breach in a critical chamber of the suit, of course, and it is over for him. I wonder if they've analyzed and simulated that for all possible re-entry orientations and velocities, including the possibility that he will be spinning every which way.

Count me out if they are looking for volunteers for a subsequent attempt!

-- Al

[jmlikos]

WOW! Talk about crazy...

[k0NG0]

I know Kittinger used a small stabilization chute that kept him oriented properly. Worked great except that one time it didn't and he spun out of control, had a red-out and was saved by the automatic main chute (IIRC). This guy's badass but Kittinger was badass!

[Pentium4]

130,000 feet, that's amazing I can barely handle standing on the kitchen chair to grab something off the top shelf without sh*tting myself

[ctal]

The latest update:

Oops! Skydiver's balloon takes off without him

After many millions of dollars and many years of preparation, involving an army of people, they can't even get the balloon inflated properly? Lucky for him!



-- Al