Supersonic Skydiver Felix Baumgartner Makes Heart-Stopping Jump From Space
Oct. 14 2012, Published 6:15 a.m. ET
Just call him Fearless Felix!
After five years of preparation, Felix Baumgartner successfully leapt from the edge of space Sunday.
As millions watched on television and the Internet, the Austrian skydiver jumped from a space capsule tethered to a 55-story helium balloon after it reached the altitude of 127,000 feet.
It took two hours and 20 minutes to ascend to the height of the jump, and just five minutes for Baumgartner to descend.
Baumgartner wore a pressurized astronaut-like suit. He was supported by a NASA-style mission control operation called Red Bull Stratos at an airfield in Roswell, New Mexico, with 300 engineers, scientists and physicians.
“We’re testing new space suits, escape concepts, and treatment protocols for pressure loss at extreme altitudes,” Red Bull Stratos medical director, Dr. Jonathan Clark, who formerly oversaw the health of space shuttle crews at NASA, told The New York Times.
“There are so many things that could go wrong here that we’re pushing the technical envelope.”
Fortunately, nothing did go wrong. Congratulations!
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