Sunday, February 05, 2012

It's a Funny Old World: Sky Diving Edition

In spite of my sense of adventure, rather you than me brother.

Sky diver to break sound barrier with jump from edge of space

A skydiver is set to become the first person to break the sound barrier during a free fall by leaping from a balloon on the edge of space later this year.
By Richard Gray
05 Feb 2012

It is the ultimate in parachute jumps: from the edge of space, Felix Baumgartner will leap from a balloon, plummeting to the ground 120,000 feet below.

After 35 seconds he will break the sound barrier, and finally, at 5,000 feet he will deploy a parachute and – hopefully – land safely on the ground.

During his 10-minute journey to earth the Austrian will travel at more than 690 miles per hour inside a special suit, which must protect him from temperatures as low as -94 degrees F.

He will rely on its oxygen tanks as the air is too thin to breathe – and hope that the sheer force of the fall does not make him blackout.

The team working with the Austrian will this week announce that an attempt to make the record breaking jump will take place in August above New Mexico.

Writing on his blog about being given the chance to make the jump, Mr Baumgartner said: "I am struggling to find the right words to express my happiness, how relieved and motivated I am."

Mr Baumgartner said he hoped his stunt would help provide valuable information about how humans will cope in the future with space tourism and open up new types of extreme sports such as space diving.

He added: "I always feel the danger because you might always be subject to an unexpected or emergency event. One single mistake might cause a real catastrophe. You are worried about being where humans shouldn't be.

"The longest time I've spent inside the suit with the front part of the helmet closed, is three hours, and to be honest, it was horrible.

"To jump and break the sound barrier will not be a mere record breaking experience or another extreme event that ends once the mission is accomplished.

"This is an experience that will simulate the first human landing on the moon, and will benefit scientific research."

Mr Baumgartner, who has also "base jumped" – parachuted from low altitudes – off the right arm of the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is hoping to beat a record held for 50 years by Joe Kittinger, a US air force colonel who jumped from 102,800 feet in 1960.

The skydive, which is being sponsored by energy drink manufacturer Red Bull, will attempt to break four world records – the highest altitude freefall, the highest manned balloon flight, the longest distance travelled in freefall and the speed record for the fastest freefall.

Mr Baumgartner, who is a helicopter pilot when he is not skydiving, will travel into the Earth's stratosphere in a specially adapted scientific weather balloon.

The huge helium balloon, which will inflate to be around 400 feet wide, will carry a pressurised capsule up to 120,000 feet in around three hours. Commercial airliners typically cruise at altitudes of between 30,000 to 39,000 feet.

At 23 miles up, the air pressure is 1,000 times less than it is at sea level and air is so thin that without his own oxygen supply Mr Baumgartner would suffocate. His blood would begin to boil because the boiling point of liquids falls as pressure falls.

A custom made pressurised suit similar to those used by Nasa astronauts will protect him from the harsh environment. Engineers have spent nearly two years developing and testing the suit in preparation for the jump.

Oxygen cylinders packed into the parachute pack will supply him with 20 minutes of oxygen, more than enough for the 10 minute skydive.

The parachute itself has also had to be adapted so that Mr Baumgartner can reach the cords to open it while inside the pressure suit, which makes it difficult for him to move around freely.

Once the balloon reaches its highest altitude, Mr Baumgartner will open the specially constructed capsule, before launching himself into the unknown.

Scientists working on his team estimate he will break through the sound barrier after around 35 seconds in the thin air of the stratosphere, reaching Mach 1.2.

At this altitude, the speed of sound is 690 miles per hour, slower than at sea level where the sound barrier is reached at 768 miles per hour because of the difference in temperature and air density.

The helmet of his suit has been constructed to help protect him from the sonic boom as his passes through the sound barrier. It will also feature a heated visor and sun shield to help keep his vision clear.

After around 5 minutes of freefall, Mr Baumgartner, will open his parachute at 4,986 feet. The increased air resistance as the atmosphere thickens will help to slow him down before pulling the parachute.

A further five minutes later he is due to land back safely back on the ground.

The supersonic skydive is not without its complications, however. Among the greatest danger he will face after jumping is going into a spin which would cause him to blackout.

This almost killed Kittinger in training during 1959 when a stabilising parachute failed to open.

Mr Baumgartner plans to use the skills he has developed over 2,500 jumps to control his own free fall, using movements of his arms and legs to control his flight.

His team hope to have him land as close as possible to the take of zone in New Mexico, but even the slightest breath of wind could throw him off course and he could drift up to 150 miles with just a light breeze.

The jump was supposed to take place last year, but a legal case lodged against Red Bull by a promoter called Daniel Hogan who claimed the stunt was his idea saw all preparations being abandoned and Red Bull cancelled the project. Last July, however, the legal dispute was resolved and the case was dismissed.

He also faces competition from other skydivers hoping to break the record before him. Michel Fournier, a 67-year-old retired US Air Force colonel, is also hoping to jump from an altitude of 25 miles but has faced delays. He also expects to make his jump attempt in 2012. Telegraph Photo and comments.

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