Everything is set for this coming Monday ’s skydive stunt spectacular , in which Felix Baumgartner will essay to set a new world record for the highest , longest , and fast freefall in history . Once he leaps from a atomic number 2 balloon positioned 23 miles ( 37 kilometer ) above New Mexico , Baumgartner expects to go supersonic a simple 40 instant into his descent . And this near - space skydive , should it be successful , could lay out the phase for the next momentous human accomplishment : The space dive .
So , to get you quick for Monday , here ’s everything you need to be intimate about the historic jumping .
Who holds the current platter ?
Back on August 16 , 1960 , Colonel ( then Captain ) Joseph Kittinger of the United States Air Force jump 19.5 Roman mile ( 31.3 km ) from a helium balloon . It was part of Project Excelsior , a programme designed to test a new multi - stage parachute system that could be deploy from extreme heights . The U.S. military was becoming increasingly concerned that pilots , who were wing sheet at unprecedented altitudes , would not be able to survive the required jump .
And indeed , late tests with dummies unwrap that conventional chute would cause skydiver to fall into a plane spin at a rate of 200 revolutions per minute — which would be potentially fatal .
Using the new parachute , Kittinger survived the jump — but not without incident . During his rise , the pressure seal in his veracious baseball glove miscarry , causing his hand to swell to twice its normal size . Despite the uttermost nuisance due to the low pressure ( which he preserve to himself for fear that the jump would be cancelled ) , he kick the bucket ahead and made “ the highest step in the human beings . ”
In terms of the numbers , Kittinger ’s freefall lasted for four arcminute and 36 seconds in which he discover a top speeding of 614 miles per hour ( 988 km / hour ) . The full descent took a little over 13 minute .
Kittinger ’s record has abide for over half a century — which is pretty badass when you think about it .
Who is Felix Baumgartner ?
He is a 43 year - onetime Austrian stunt skydiver and BASE jumper . Baumgartner has been skydiving since he was 16 years honest-to-god . A member of the Austrian armed forces and a former pilot program , he was a part of their demonstration and competition team .
After leaving the armed services , Baumgartner start out to perform a routine of skydiving and BASE jumping stunt . He holds a identification number of records and accomplishments . In 1999 , he jumped from the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur setting a track record for the high parachute jump from a edifice . Four geezerhood after , he became the first person to skydive across the English Channel using a especially made carbon paper fiber wing . He has also leap from the hand of the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro , and more recently , he became the first person to leap from the 91st floor observation pack of cards of the Taipei 101 building in Taiwan .
before this year , on July 25 , and in prep for the Big Jump , Baumgartner had a successful trial discharge in which he performed a freefall from 18 miles above the Earth . He attained a top pep pill of 536 miles per hr ( 864 km / 60 minutes ) , which is roughly the fastness of an airliner .
He is only the third mortal to safely parachute from a pinnacle of over 13.5 miles ( 21.7 km ) .
What form of equipment will he be using ?
There are three major constituent to his equipment : The suit , the capsule , and the He balloon .
The suit of clothes was specifically design for the start and will able to stand firm temperatures as low-down as – 70 ° F ( – 56 ° century ) . It consists of four layer , including an insulating and fire - repellant material call Nomex , and a breathable liner that will perch against his pelt .
It also features a pressure organisation to assist him avoid decompression sickness , hypoxia , and weave damage . As he fall down , a special valve and a pair of diaphragms will regulate the suit ’s internal pressing . It also has a pectus mob that ’s outfit with a articulation sender and receiver , an accelerometer ( which will substantiate his speed ) , and a hi - def video camera with a superwide 120 - level view .
And significantly , the suit is also outfit with a G - Meter that will measure the gravitational forces on Baumgartner . Should he go into a potentially disastrous twist , the arrangement will mechanically release a three - foundation drogue parachute specially designed to brace spins .
The courtship also features a limited face shield that will prevent his intimation from crystallizing on the open , along with three different parachutes . To ascertain stability , the chutes are 2.5 clock time larger than common .
It ’s worth noting that Joseph Kittinger helped to propose Baumgartner on the suit during the maturation unconscious process .
As for the capsule , it weighs 2,900 lb and consists of a atmospheric pressure field ( where Baumgartner will be positioned during the ascent ) , a sustain outer John Cage , the outermost shell , and the base and crush pads ( which are designed to handle a landing of up to 8 Gs ) .
The 30 million - cubic - foot He balloon is one one-tenth the heaviness of a Ziploc bag — but matter more than 3,000 pound . If the intact matter was stretch out it would cover about 40 acres .
How will the jump unfold ?
On Monday October 8 , Baumgartner will enter into his capsule and originate to make his long ascent into the stratosphere . The total journeying to near - quad is expected to take almost three hours . Once Baumgartner pass the stratosphere , the temperature will bulge out to increase ( just a little bit ) on report of the ozone molecules absorb ultraviolet sparkle from the sun .
At the 23 Admiralty mile mark ( 37 km or 120,000 feet ) above New Mexico , he will wait for the “ all clear ” from mission ascendence . After he depressurise and come off himself from all connection , Baumgartner will unfold the door and position himself for the jumping . In the event of an pinch , he could drive the abridgment back to terra firma — but while depressurize and with limited oxygen reservation . It would n’t be pretty .
Assuming everything will be a go , he will then spring from the capsule .
At this point , Baumgartner ’s pace of velocity will be nothing short of intense . He will insert into what ’s called the “ delta stance ” ( manoeuver down with limb at his side ) so as to reach maximum velocity . And because of the exceptionally sparse air in the stratosphere , he will experience near no hint resistance , and he will not hit any kind of terminal speed . As a result , he ’s expected to achieve the speed of sound ( 690 sea mile / hour or 1,110 km / hr ) after only 40 seconds of freefall . It will be of the essence for Baumgartner to maintain a stable delta position , otherwise he may enter into an uncontrollable twist and lose consciousness .
It ’s deserving remark that Baumgartner will get a sonic boom , but because the breeze is so slender it wo n’t award a problem . At least that ’s the theory .
As Baumgartner falls away from the edge of approximate - space and makes his way into the troposphere , he will start to bump off resistance and bit by bit slow down .
Once he polish off the 5,000 feet mark ( about five second after his leap ) , Baumgartner will deploy his parachute . It should take him another 10 to 15 minutes to touch the surface .
Should everything go as planned , he will become the first person to break the speed of sound and achieve Mach 1 in freefall . He will also set the record for the highest and longest freefall . And not only that , he will also set a record for the highest man balloon flight .
What are the scientific conditional relation ?
While the start for certain afford off the impression that it ’s a stunt ( and let ’s look it — it most certainly is ) , there are some definite scientific and technological aspects to the mission .
First and first , Baumgartner ’s suit of clothes is state of the art . take over that it functions as planned , it will assist in the ontogenesis of a new generation of space suit — including units with enhanced mobility and improve ocular limpidity .
And as New Scientist recentlynoted , it could also be a forerunner to suit of clothes that may actually allow humans to freefall from even more uttermost stature — possibly even from space . This could prove worthful for the burgeoning space tourist manufacture ( mostly for safety purposes in the effect of a problem , or for succeeding thrill seeker ) .
It ’s not clear , of course , if a homo will ever be able to do a full reentry wear only a spacesuit — but Baumgarter ’s run could offer a inviolable indication of the leeway required to pull off such a singular effort . But in all fairness , it will take some considerable technological know - how to grow a suit that can withstand the intense heat of reentry and not let its occupier to be burn to a chip .
Lastly , the mission will assist scientists develop protocol for exposure to high altitude and high acceleration , and create chute system capable of supporting such feats .
How can I observe ?
TheRed Bull Stratos websitewill be live disseminate the missionhere . It will set out at 5:00 AM PST on Monday October 8 , 2012 .
Sources : RedBullStratos , PopSci , New Scientist . image : Felix Baumgartner , Robert Yager , Jeff Newton , Red Bull Stratos .
Felix BaumgartnerScience
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