[Timoteo]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49406174/ns/...e-science/

You can watch live here. They are more than two hours into his ascent, and he's supposed to jump out of the capsule sometime within three hours. It's a nice little bit of history to be able to watch live. I've been following the progress of this mission for over a year, and after a couple of aborts this week because of high winds, they were a go today...

[Timoteo]

Mission accomplished! Felix Baumgartner successfully parachuted back to Earth after jumping from about 28 miles up. You can get the latest at http://www.RedBullStratos.com.

[Basil Ransom]

Awesome. Major props to Red Bull for sponsoring this original, dazzling feat, as well as Felix and the team.

[Handsome Creepy Eel]

Amazing stuff. I'm really happy for everyone involved. A fantastic achievement!

[Cincinnatus]

That was pretty damned cool to watch. I tuned in about fifteen minutes before he made the plunge. Glad to see he's back on the ground and safe.

[Timoteo]

The press conference and some of the confirmed stats from the jump are coming up. He didn't break the record for freefall - I think he was a few seconds short of Kittinger's freefall time. They're trying to confirm if he broke the sound barrier on the way down. Over the next few weeks and months they'll be compiling the information recorded by the cameras and gauges that were on his suit, and the capsule probably landed back on Earth a few minutes ago, so they'll be getting the data from that too. It was cool to watch him fall off of the platform, and just like that he was a dot on the way back down. Baumgartner is supposedly retiring from jumping after this, but I don't see how he'll be able to get his daredevil fix from now until the end of his life. He'll probably just do normal skydiving, like the rest of us mere mortals.

[Timoteo]

They're streaming again, so it looks like they're about ready to get the press conference started.

[_GQ_]

He pulled the parachute too soon!

[Timoteo]

(10-14-2012 02:43 PM)_GQ_ Wrote:  

He pulled the parachute too soon!

Kittinger, being the only other man on Earth that knew what Baumgartner was experiencing, was the one communicating with him throughout the mission, running him through his pre-jump checklist, giving him encouragement, and talking to him on the way down. Maybe he told him to pull a bit early to preserve at least ONE of his records...HA HA!

[sixsix]

Honest question: who of you guys would try something like this (given his experience and preparation)?

It is fucking badass and a proper reason to piss your pants, but holy shit how awesome must it be to stand at the edge of space and jump towards the planet. When I have the money and time I will first start sky diving regularly and then BASE jumping. I would also love to go to outer space. Getting out of that freaking capsule however...

[Timoteo]

(10-14-2012 03:01 PM)sixsix Wrote:  

Honest question: who of you guys would try something like this (given his experience and preparation)?

It is fucking badass and a proper reason to piss your pants, but holy shit how awesome must it be to stand at the edge of space and jump towards the planet. When I have the money and time I will first start sky diving regularly and then BASE jumping. I would also love to go to outer space. Getting out of that freaking capsule however...

This is the ultimate. In the couple of years they've been planning this mission, with all of the discussion about what could go wrong, and what would happen to the human body if it DID go wrong, would cause most men to quit. In fact, they had to shut down the project for a few months because Baumgartner was having some psychological problems regarding the isolation he felt within the suit. He had to go through some counseling, etc. to get himself back on track. He's a straight-up daredevil, yet even HE had some bad moments leading up to today. I believe they completed a couple of test jumps from lower altitudes (around 71,600 and 97,000 feet to test the suit and all of the systems, before going to 128,000 today), so this is actually the third high-altitude jump he's done. Also, I had never heard of Kittinger's jump in 1960 before I started reading about what Red Bull Stratos was attempting to do. Considering WHEN he did it, Kittinger should have been a national hero also.

[Sourcecode]

I first read about this last year or so when it was in a popular science magazine.
Id gladly volunteer for this.

But its a lack of training...baumgartners probably got at a thousand jumps under his belt..

He went into a spin for a good while.but recovered.
If anyone else started spinning at 400+mph it would simply be over.

That spin recovery is probably what stopped him from breaking the barrier too.

[_GQ_]

This will make one hell of a DHV lol.

Does anyone know if his helmet had different cameras attached, with footage that will be released later?

[Timoteo]

(10-14-2012 03:50 PM)_GQ_ Wrote:  

This will make one hell of a DHV lol.

Does anyone know if his helmet had different cameras attached, with footage that will be released later?

There were cameras attached to him, and I'm sure they're looking at all the data from the jump now. According to what was said at the press conference, the capsule landed some 55 miles east of where Baumgartner touched down. They'll have to get it and drive it back to mission control. I'll have to keep checking in on the site to see when they'll post video from the drop.

[Cincinnatus]

(10-14-2012 03:50 PM)_GQ_ Wrote:  

This will make one hell of a DHV lol.

Does anyone know if his helmet had different cameras attached, with footage that will be released later?

Before Felix jumped, Kittinger instructed him to power on the suit's cameras. I imagine that footage will be released later on, along with the computer data stored on chips within the suit.

[_GQ_]

Sweet. I wonder if this will become a commercial thing. The roller coaster of the future.

[Timoteo]

(10-14-2012 03:27 PM)Sourcecode Wrote:  

I first read about this last year or so when it was in a popular science magazine.
Id gladly volunteer for this.

But its a lack of training...baumgartners probably got at a thousand jumps under his belt..

He went into a spin for a good while.but recovered.
If anyone else started spinning at 400+mph it would simply be over.

That spin recovery is probably what stopped him from breaking the barrier too.

Actually, I believe he did break Mach 1. He topped 700 mph on the way down, with the sound barrier being around 690. His speed was being recorded real time, and Bob Hager, the NBC reporter, commented at the time that he believed he broke the barrier. It's all unofficial at the moment, but they should be able to confirm pretty soon. His spin actually wasn't as severe as it could have been, but he still managed it very well. It's also the 65th anniversary of Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier in a jet, which happened purely by accident because they originally tried to do this on Monday.

[Timoteo]

(10-14-2012 04:10 PM)_GQ_ Wrote:  

Sweet. I wonder if this will become a commercial thing. The roller coaster of the future.

The private outfits that are testing those high altitude craft (like Richard Branson/Virgin) are looking to take deep-pocketed passengers to the edge of space within the next 2 or 3 years. I don't know if you'll have private citizens body-bombing from up there, but definitely sightseeing...HA HA!

[Sourcecode]

(10-14-2012 04:46 PM)Timoteo Wrote:  

(10-14-2012 03:27 PM)Sourcecode Wrote:  

I first read about this last year or so when it was in a popular science magazine.
Id gladly volunteer for this.

But its a lack of training...baumgartners probably got at a thousand jumps under his belt..

He went into a spin for a good while.but recovered.
If anyone else started spinning at 400+mph it would simply be over.

That spin recovery is probably what stopped him from breaking the barrier too.

Actually, I believe he did break Mach 1. He topped 700 mph on the way down, with the sound barrier being around 690. His speed was being recorded real time, and Bob Hager, the NBC reporter, commented at the time that he believed he broke the barrier. It's all unofficial at the moment, but they should be able to confirm pretty soon. His spin actually wasn't as severe as it could have been, but he still managed it very well. It's also the 65th anniversary of Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier in a jet, which happened purely by accident because they originally tried to do this on Monday.

Ive seen multiple versions of the speed he went. the highest I saw was 729mph
speed of sound is 760 at sea level.
I have no idea what it was at the altitude he supposedly hit it.

Theres so many stories right now, im not exactly sure

[reino341]

It was boring as hell to be honest.

I was probably the only one hoping he'd turn into a fireball on the way down.

[void]

pretty epic, i like how he falls down to his knees after the landing. red bull definitely is the company with the most bad ass advertising strategy

[Timoteo]

(10-14-2012 05:54 PM)Sourcecode Wrote:  

(10-14-2012 04:46 PM)Timoteo Wrote:  

(10-14-2012 03:27 PM)Sourcecode Wrote:  

I first read about this last year or so when it was in a popular science magazine.
Id gladly volunteer for this.

But its a lack of training...baumgartners probably got at a thousand jumps under his belt..

He went into a spin for a good while.but recovered.
If anyone else started spinning at 400+mph it would simply be over.

That spin recovery is probably what stopped him from breaking the barrier too.

Actually, I believe he did break Mach 1. He topped 700 mph on the way down, with the sound barrier being around 690. His speed was being recorded real time, and Bob Hager, the NBC reporter, commented at the time that he believed he broke the barrier. It's all unofficial at the moment, but they should be able to confirm pretty soon. His spin actually wasn't as severe as it could have been, but he still managed it very well. It's also the 65th anniversary of Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier in a jet, which happened purely by accident because they originally tried to do this on Monday.

Ive seen multiple versions of the speed he went. the highest I saw was 729mph
speed of sound is 760 at sea level.
I have no idea what it was at the altitude he supposedly hit it.

Theres so many stories right now, im not exactly sure

As they explain it, where the air is colder, sound travels more slowly. At 100,000 feet, the barrier is 690, so he would have broken the barrier in the earliest portion of the jump. In the thicker, warmer lower atmosphere it would have been impossible for him to do it lying flat.

[michelin]

how much more alpha can one get? This Baumgartner has it all, hard not to become jealous of his performance.

[Timoteo]

(10-14-2012 06:52 PM)michelin Wrote:  

how much more alpha can one get? This Baumgartner has it all, hard not to become jealous of his performance.

During the press conference, he was asked how this jump compared to his others (skydiving, BASE jumping, etc.). He said that he actually flew/glided over the English Channel wearing/testing a carbon fiber wing of some sort. This dude is no joke. He's all about testing himself and pushing limits.

[speakeasy]

(10-14-2012 02:49 PM)Timoteo Wrote:  

(10-14-2012 02:43 PM)_GQ_ Wrote:  

He pulled the parachute too soon!

Kittinger, being the only other man on Earth that knew what Baumgartner was experiencing, was the one communicating with him throughout the mission, running him through his pre-jump checklist, giving him encouragement, and talking to him on the way down. Maybe he told him to pull a bit early to preserve at least ONE of his records...HA HA!

Boards of Canada made a pretty cool video using the Kittinger footage. The music blends with it so well.

I was reading an interview with Kittinger once about his high altitude jump as that had been a first time anyone had done any such thing. He had quite some interesting thoughts and observations. What was really interesting is that he says when you jump out at that altitude, you have no point of reference as to how far or fast you're falling. Since the atmosphere is almost non-existent, you don't hear any rushing of the wind, nor does the fabric on your suit ripple as there's no air-resistence to move it. He said for a few minutes you freak out wondering if you're literally stuck up there in space. He said only when he looked up and saw the balloon racing away at high speed into the blackness of the sky did he get the sense that he was actually moving. Within a few minutes he then felt relieved as he started hearing the rush of moving air as the atmosphere thickened at lower altitudes.

He also noticed how it changes your perspective of things making that jump. You realize that humans exist in a very thin slice of the planet that is habitable for life. Once you leave this tiny bubble, it is a very hostile universe out there.

Hats off to the few men that have had the privilege of experiencing this.

Quote:

"I am at 103,000 feet, looking out over a very beautiful, beautiful world. As you look up, it is a hostile sky. As I sit here and wait, I have realized that man will never conquer space. We will learn to live with it, but we will never conquer it. I can see for over 400 miles. Beneath me I can see the clouds... looking through my mirror, the sky is absolutely black. Devoid of anything. I can see the beautiful blue of the sky and above that it goes into a deep, deep, dark, indescribable blue which no artist could ever capture. It's fantastic." — Joseph Kittinger, Radio communication, August 16, 1960

He staggered to the edge of the gondola — due to the decrease in gravity at that height, he actually weighed three pounds less than he had on the ground — and positioned himself with the toes of his boots protruding slightly beyond the edge of the floor piece, then took a deep breath of pure oxygen and held it. A sign printed at the base of the door, inches below his toes, read "HIGHEST STEP IN THE WORLD". He turned and pushed the button that activated all twelve cameras simultaneously; even inside his helmet he could plainly hear the clicking whir of all the tiny motors. Then he tried to grasp the familiar lanyard with his swollen, ice-cold right hand, exposed as it was to the vacuum of space from the glove malfunction, and realized immediately that there was no way he could grip the lanyard, much less pull it. He let it drop. He would have to trust his weight to pull it and arm the timing knob on the harness as he fell. Kittinger fell forward as he had done on the two previous flights, but it was different this time. This time he was convinced he was going to die. He was out. He was floating. It was like before: no rush of wind, no sensation of falling, no perception of movement at all. He hung suspended in this calm universe. His pulse was 156 beats per minute and he had not taken a breath since leaving the gondola — not even his own respiration intruded on the astonishing emptiness. It was all impossibly beautiful.