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I came across this video of Col. Joseph Kittinger doing his world record jump. Some kind of stones to pull something like this off.
Backgrounder:
While Joe Kittinger Jr. was growing up in Tampa, Fla., his dream was to become a pilot, perhaps to become a famous military aviator, but his claim to fame came not from flying, but from falling, almost 20 miles straight down. On the way, he became the first man to exceed the speed of sound -- without a plane.
During Project Excelsior, there were three high altitude jumps accomplished from a balloon-supported gondola; the first from 76,400 feet; the second from 74,700 feet 25 days later; and on Aug. 16, 1960, from 102,800 feet, the highest altitude from which man has ever jumped. It was Kittinger who did the jumping.
In freefall for four and a half minutes, Kittinger fell at speeds up to 714 mph, exceeding the speed of sound. He experienced temperatures as low as -94 degrees Fahrenheit. Kittinger opened his parachute at 18,000 feet and landed safely in the New Mexico desert after a 13 minute 45 second descent. Project Excelsior successfully proved the new parachute system, the Beaupre Multi-Stage Parachute, would solve the problem of high altitude escape by crewmen.
I wonder what kind of wings you get when you jump from damn near outter space?
Backgrounder:
While Joe Kittinger Jr. was growing up in Tampa, Fla., his dream was to become a pilot, perhaps to become a famous military aviator, but his claim to fame came not from flying, but from falling, almost 20 miles straight down. On the way, he became the first man to exceed the speed of sound -- without a plane.
During Project Excelsior, there were three high altitude jumps accomplished from a balloon-supported gondola; the first from 76,400 feet; the second from 74,700 feet 25 days later; and on Aug. 16, 1960, from 102,800 feet, the highest altitude from which man has ever jumped. It was Kittinger who did the jumping.
In freefall for four and a half minutes, Kittinger fell at speeds up to 714 mph, exceeding the speed of sound. He experienced temperatures as low as -94 degrees Fahrenheit. Kittinger opened his parachute at 18,000 feet and landed safely in the New Mexico desert after a 13 minute 45 second descent. Project Excelsior successfully proved the new parachute system, the Beaupre Multi-Stage Parachute, would solve the problem of high altitude escape by crewmen.
I wonder what kind of wings you get when you jump from damn near outter space?
