The highest recorded skydive was performed in 1960 by Joe Kittinger from
102,800 feet. That record may not stand any longer. After twenty years of planning and attempts, almost twenty million dollars, and a two hour ascent on May 26th, Michel Fournier, wearing only space suit and parachute, will step out of the gondola of a 650 foot helium balloon at
130,000 feet....
The Great Leap. [more inside]
posted by Kronos_to_Earth
on May 24, 2008 -
29 comments
It's a bird, it's a plane! , no it's the Special Forces using strap-on stealth wings to zoom silently into battle. We've all fantasized about
jet packs, but being dropped from a plane with wings on your back is a silent way to travel great distances before opening a parachute for landing, just like daredevil Felix Baumgartner, who
soared across the English Channel. Who wants to go first?
posted by twsf
on Jun 6, 2006 -
22 comments
"Skydiver in record Channel flight" is the claim made by an Austrian skydiving across the channel aided by small strap-on wings.
Evidently he needed a 1 in 4 glide angle to make it, but a simple understanding of flight mechanics would suggest that the distance he could fly is proportional to the amount of strap-on wing area. At what point does skydiving become gliding?
posted by marvin
on Jul 31, 2003 -
12 comments
anyone been to
safer america to stock up on tin foil hats or mustard gas spit shields?
is it strange to capitalize on paranoia like this, or to open flag shops after sept. 11th?
joking aside, any reports from the store from new yawkers?
posted by asparagus_berlin
on Feb 20, 2003 -
13 comments
Pilot parachutes plane to safety. Never before had a certified aircraft used a parachute to land. But that all changed Thursday afternoon when a pilot in distress used Cirrus' parachute system to successfully bring his disabled airplane to earth.
Plane malfunctioning?
Release the rip cord! More inside.
posted by hockeyman
on Oct 5, 2002 -
12 comments
