Felix Baumgartner's attempt to ascend
to 120,000 feet in a stratospheric balloon and make a freefall jump
rushing toward earth at supersonic speeds before parachuting to the
ground has been aborted due to winds in excess of 17 miles per hour.
Red Bull Stratos Jump Sunday UPDATE:
The balloon and capsule have lifted off.
Red Bull Stratos Jump Sunday UPDATE:
The balloon and capsule have lifted off.
The Red Bull Stratos jump team brings together the world's leading minds
in aerospace medicine, engineering, pressure suit development, capsule
creation and balloon fabrication. It includes retired United States Air
Force Colonel Joseph Kittinger, who holds three of the records Felix
will strive to break.
Joe's record jump from 102,800 ft in 1960 was during a time when no
one knew if a human could survive a jump from the edge of space. Joe was
a Captain in the U.S. Air Force and had already taken a balloon to
97,000 feet in Project ManHigh and survived a drogue mishap during a
jump from 76,400 feet in Excelsior I. The Excelsior III mission was his
33rd parachute jump.
Although researching extremes was part of the program's goals,
setting records wasn't the mission's purpose. Joe ascended in helium
balloon launched from the back of a truck. He wore a pressurized suit on
the way up in an open, unpressurized gondola. Scientific data captured
from Joe's jump was shared with U.S. research personnel for development
of the space program. Today Felix and his specialized team hope to take
what was learned from Joe's jumps more than 50 years ago and press
forward to test the edge of the human envelope.
The Red Bull Stratos mission will be covered live by Discovery News, Discovery Channel and Velocity. Follow @Discovery_News, @Discovery, @VelocityTV1 and the hashtag #SpaceJumpLIVE on Twitter for live updates and commentary.
PHOTO: Red Bull
Livestream: Discovery Channel
Article From Sources: Red Bull and Discovery Channel
