120,000' skydive underway

[DrJay]

Balloon lifted off about 20 minutes ago. Should take about 2 hrs to reach 120,000' altitude. Watch live:

http://www.redbullstratos.com/live/

[kuha]

By my hasty back-of-the-envelope calculation, he'll become the first person to "do" a 6 second mile outside of any mechanical contraption. Makes Bolt look like a tortoise.

[Conor Dary]

Sorry but Kittinger did a 6 second mile, only 6 years after Bannister did his epic feat.

[gh]

WOW... now that's reality TV!

[Rye Catcher]

729 mph. But did it break the mach? I believe that above 40,000ft, mach 1 is considered 660mph, so it appears on the surface that he broke the mach. We will see.

I wonder what his shockwave looked like?

[gh]

interesting that he didn't break the freefall record; going faster actually compromised that goal!

[Rye Catcher]

interesting that he didn't break the freefall record; going faster actually compromised that goal!

He actually screwed up. He could have deployed his chute later at a lower falling speed.

[jeremyp]

interesting that he didn't break the freefall record; going faster actually compromised that goal!

He actually screwed up. He could have deployed his chute later at a lower falling speed.

I understand he was supposed to do it at 5,000' and it looks like he did it at 6,000+. One huge step for man.....

[gh]

I suspect he had no control over the deployment; because of the (high) risk of his being unconscious/disoriented, they would have rigged the gear with an "altimeter" that triggered the release at a pre-set altitude, no?

[Rye Catcher]

I suspect he had no control over the deployment; because of the (high) risk of his being unconscious/disoriented, they would have rigged the gear with an "altimeter" that triggered the release at a pre-set altitude, no?

Probably correct, but ha may have pulled early or the barometer screwed up. I believe they had computed the pull altitude so as to get the freefall time record. Oh well, maybe in another lifetime someone will break the record or maybe not.

[Anthony Treacher]

That's nowt. Everyone knows that the real thrill comes from a static line jump from a tethered balloon at only 800 feet. (Followed by a summer night with The Witch of Abingdon on the grassy banks of the Thames).

Otherwise I recognize guts. But I instinctively do not like this spaceman-parachuting. It seems a foolhardy, useless gimmick. He could have killed himself. And the next bloke to try it probably will.

[Rye Catcher]

Looks like he broke the speed record. 1,342.8 KM/H, 834 MPH, mach 1.24.

[tandfman]

He also broke the YouTube record. More than 8 million live viewers.

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/articles/39427 ... record.htm

[jeremyp]

Question? Was there a bang? Or is that just planes?

[Conor Dary]

Probably not much of one if at all. Remember he could go that fast only because there was so little atmosphere, and slowed down considerably as he got closer to the ground.

[lonewolf]

My Army Ranger son says for a real thrill in parachuting, try it from 500'.. at night.

[Rye Catcher]

My Army Ranger son says for a real thrill in parachuting, try it from 500'.. at night.

I can pass on that little trick. In fact, anyone who willingly jumps out of a perfectly good airplane is a bit daff.

[Anthony Treacher]

It was quite easy at that age: “I are going to die. But it does not matter. It’s the Sergeant’s fault. He told me to jump.”