Skydive from space apparently back on

[novelist_wannabe]

Make sure to maintain that seal ...

"If he opens up his face mask or the suit, all the gases in your body go out of suspension, so you literally turn into a giant fizzy, oozing fluid from your eyes and mouth, like something out of a horror film," Thomson continued. "It's just seconds until death."

http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/294640/20120207/felix-baumgartner-space-jump-video-red-bull.htm

 

[bigpern23]

Pretty cool story. I'm sure a bunch of people will jump on him and call him stupid (or worse), but he's a grown man, who knows the risk he's taking. Seems like science can learn a lot from it and it's cool to see someone trying to push the limits of the human experience.

 

[old_tony]

Hell, if that's what he wants to do, that's fine by me. But I predict he doesn't make it. I can't imagine how he'd be traveling at the speed of sound and be able to open his chute. I can't imagine him even being conscious when it's time to open the chute. Also can't imagine the chute or chutes will slow him sufficiently from only a mile above ground. At that speed (over 700 mph) it probably takes half a mile just for them to start to open.

 

[mrbigles01]

Hell, if that's what he wants to do, that's fine by me. But I predict he doesn't make it. I can't imagine how he'd be traveling at the speed of sound and be able to open his chute. I can't imagine him even being conscious when it's time to open the chute. Also can't imagine the chute or chutes will slow him sufficiently from only a mile above ground. At that speed (over 700 mph) it probably takes half a mile just for them to start to open.

Let me take a WILD guess that the guy who has been planning a skydive from 23 miles up for YEARS has thought of and addressed those problems . . . but maybe you should give him a call just to check.

 

[Gator]

 

[playthrough]

Hell, if that's what he wants to do, that's fine by me. But I predict he doesn't make it. I can't imagine how he'd be traveling at the speed of sound and be able to open his chute. I can't imagine him even being conscious when it's time to open the chute. Also can't imagine the chute or chutes will slow him sufficiently from only a mile above ground. At that speed (over 700 mph) it probably takes half a mile just for them to start to open.

Let me take a WILD guess that the guy who has been planning a skydive from 23 miles up for YEARS has thought of and addressed those problems . . . but maybe you should give him a call just to check.

Presumably so. But if someone asked me to put a wager on it, I'll say he won't live to talk about this on the Today Show.

 

[Armchair_QB]

This is just ****ing insane.

 

[bigpern23]

I'm curious about the heat factor. Obviously, the Columbia broke up on re-entry because of the cracked heat shield. Is friction going to be an issue for this guy or would he have to be in orbit for it to become a factor?

I'm wondering if the suit is designed to withstand the friction or if he simply won't be high enough for it be an issue.

 

[User 1019]

It's my understanding that he won't be high enough for the heat to become an issue. I mean, the FAA considers outer space everything above 60,000 feet mean sea level. As for the parachute-opening issue, I think he will have a parachute that opens automatically at a certain barometric altitude.

 

[Hokie_pokie]

Well, of all the possible ways to go, turning into "a giant fizzy, oozing fluid from your eyes and mouth, like something out of a horror film," is nowhere near No. 1 on my list.

But whatever. Some people are just bat**** ****ing crazy.

 

[Starman]

"If he opens up his face mask or the suit, all the gases in your body go out of suspension, so you literally turn into a giant fizzy, oozing fluid from your eyes and mouth, like something out of a horror film."

I kinda bet he doesn't intend to open up the facemask or the suit until he's back on the ground. That's kinda like saying if you were driving your car at 60 mph and opened the door and lowered your face onto the concrete it would be bad for your complexion -- it's true, but why the hell would you do it??

Reaching a speed of 700 mph won't be that much of a problem, friction heating will not be excessive because the atmosphere is still thin enough at that altitude.

He'll open his chute going 700 mph and will start losing speed immediately. As he descends into thicker air, the resistance of the chute will increase and he will slow down quickly. The chute will absorb and dissipate most of his downward speed and avoid compression heating which occurs on supersonic entry.

Friction has nothing to do with altitude per se, rather atmospheric density in conjunction with speed.

Columbia was going 12-14,000 mph when it broke up, but it was also at an altitude of about 180,000 feet.

 

[Bubbler]

At that speed, won't the parachute break his back because of the change in velocity? Could he suffer a compression disease, not unlike the bends, because of the drastic change in air pressure in his descent?

Oh well. It's his life. What a moron.

 

[RickStain]

At that speed, won't the parachute break his back because of the change in velocity?

Presumably not with the thinness of the atmosphere.

 

[Starman]

At that speed, won't the parachute break his back because of the change in velocity? Could he suffer a compression disease, not unlike the bends, because of the drastic change in air pressure in his descent?

Oh well. It's his life. What a moron.

1) No, because the chute will open while the air is still very very thin. My guess is it will open in a very slow, billowy motion rather than a sharp jerk.

2) Presumably the pressure suit will keep the internal pressure on his lungs and body overall pretty constant.

 

[novelist_wannabe]

I'm curious about the heat factor. Obviously, the Columbia broke up on re-entry because of the cracked heat shield. Is friction going to be an issue for this guy or would he have to be in orbit for it to become a factor?

I'm wondering if the suit is designed to withstand the friction or if he simply won't be high enough for it be an issue.

Can't they just cover him in Astroglide?

 

[novelist_wannabe]

UPDATE: He successfully jumped from more than 96,000 feet, reaching a top velocity of 536 mph.

http://www.space.com/16753-felix-baumgartner-space-jump-skydive.html

According to this story, space actually begins at 327,000 feet. Baumgartner isn't going to get close to that in this current endeavor.

 

[Ace]

Interesting that Red Bull is sponsoring something so dangerous. I wonder if they have figures that they get more bang for their buck if he lives or if he dies?

 

[TigerVols]

ESPN the Mag did a long take-out on this guy, and buried in the story is the fact some other dude did the same thing from just a tad shorter distance, way back in the early 60s, without any of the high-tech assistance.

Made me think there's a lot of sizzle here but not much steak.

 

[JackReacher]

UPDATE: He successfully jumped from more than 96,000 feet, reaching a top velocity of 536 mph.

http://www.space.com/16753-felix-baumgartner-space-jump-skydive.html

According to this story, space actually begins at 327,000 feet. Baumgartner isn't going to get close to that in this current endeavor.

Hasn't he been saying he wants to jump from the edge of space? Whatever that means? From what I've read, I think it means right on the cusp of space, but not IN space. Either way, he's moving up from 18 to 23 miles out next month for his big jump.

 

[Shoeless Joe]

While I'm not gonna skydive period unless I happen to be in an aircraft that is about to crash and someone offers me a parachute ...
I say let this guy have at it. If you have a problem in a normal jump from a plane, it's most likely going to kill you, so what's a few more thousand feet. Jump big or go home!