nationalmuseum.af.mil — On Aug. 16, 1960, Col. Joseph Kittinger stepped from a balloon-supported gondola at the altitude of 102,800 feet. He was in freefall for 4.5 minutes at speeds up to 614 mph and temperatures as low as -94 degrees Fahrenheit, he opened his parachute at 18,000 feet. The record still stands today. Picture from the U.S. Air Force.
Oct 21, 2008 View in Crawl 4
kevynOct 22, 2008
[citation needed]
ohcoasterOct 22, 2008
imo the coolest thing is that it didn't feel like he was falling at all until he looked back up at the balloon.
Closed AccountOct 22, 2008
@JoCoProductionsGood input like you are referring to will always be an asset to Digg. Thanks Roger.
Closed AccountOct 23, 2008
Paris? ...your making me think now- worlds longest squirrel suit jump!- er flight!Italy, London, Africa...!(O.o) a...w...e...s...o...m...eMight have to pack a lunch...though perhaps with a feeding tube.;)
nighthawkeOct 23, 2008
Joe Kittinger's Big Step shattered a ton of records; the altitude for drogue assisted freefall, unassisted speed by a single person (mach 1.05, yes he did break the sound barrier), Altitude attained by a single person in a balloon..The first, from 76,400 feet (23,287 m) in November, 1959 was a near tragedy when an equipment malfunction caused him to lose consciousness, but the automatic parachute saved him (he went into a flat spin at a rotational velocity of 120 rpm; the g-force at his extremities was calculated to be over 22 times that of gravity, setting another record). Three weeks later he jumped again from 74,700 feet (22,769 m). For that return jump Kittinger was awarded the Leo Stevens parachute medal.On August 16, 1960 he made the final jump from the Excelsior III at 102,800 feet (31,300 m). Towing a small drogue chute for stabilization, he fell for 4 minutes and 36 seconds reaching a maximum speed of Template:Edit description due to vandalism mph [1](988 km/h or 274 m/s) before opening his parachute at 18,000 feet (5,500 m). Pressurization for his right glove malfunctioned during the ascent, and his right hand swelled to twice its normal size.[1] He set historical numbers for highest balloon ascent, highest parachute jump, longest drogue-fall (4 min), and fastest speed by a human through the atmosphere[2]. These are still current USAF records, but were not submitted for aerospace world records to FAI. Kittinger received 2 awards for his jumps ; 1. For highest parachute jump. 2. The only person to break the speed of sound without a vehicle (the actual velocity was subsonic at the altitude[2]).Joe still does ballooning on a regular basis.
skyflyerkeOct 29, 2008
WHooo that's crazy!! :-)<a class="user" href="http://www.4athletes.net">http://www.4athletes.net</a>