Felix Baumgartner Red Bull Stratos Mission

Technology, World News | admin | October 9, 2012 at 9:24 pm

Felix Baumgartner Red Bull Stratos Mission - Prepares for Space Jump: Veteran free fall skydiver Felix Baumgartner is all set to break the sound barrier and make a historic space jump. A large and curious audience awaits the 23 mile space jump, an extreme athlete stunt that the world has never seen before – the project supporting this stunt is none other than the Red Bull Stratos Mission.

The space jump is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, but only if the weather permits. Earlier the stunt had been postponed for some time after the weather conditions became unfavorable. Felix Baumgartner will jump his way out of space, into south eastern New Mexico.

Felix Baumgartner has spent five years training for this stunt. He will be jumping from a 55 story helium balloon that will be ascended into the stratosphere. Baumgartner will make the journey into the stratosphere in three hours. Later, he will be jumping back and his jump is expected to last a total of ten minutes. Baumgartner is expected to reach an extremely high speed of 690 mph during his fall.

In an interview Felix Baumgartner stated that there are very high risks involved in the stunt. The first risk is the ascent of the balloon; if the balloon fails to reach the desired height there will be no time to deploy a parachute and get back to safety.

The second risk in the space jump will be the extreme lack of oxygen in the stratosphere. Felix Baumgartner explained that the pressure will be so low that without protective measures his blood could vaporize and turn into bubbles. Another risk will be because of the nature of the fall: if Baumgartner takes a very sharp spin during the fall he could lose consciousness and even develop a hemorrhage. He added that he cannot afford to let his attention divert for a split second during the fall.

The 43 year old will be reportedly jumping at 11:30 noon on Tuesday.