Skydiver Leaps From 18 Miles Up In 'Space Jump' Practice

wooferhound writes "A daredevil leapt from a balloon more than 18 miles above the Earth today, moving one step closer to a so-called 'space jump' that would set the record for the world's highest skydive. Austrian adventurer Felix Baumgartner stepped out of his custom-built capsule at an altitude of 96,640 feet (29,456 meters) above southeastern New Mexico, officials with Red Bull Stratos — the name of Baumgartner's mission — announced today. In today's jump, Baumgartner experienced freefall for three minutes and 48 seconds, reaching a top speed of 536 mph (863 kph), project officials said. Baumgartner then opened his parachute and glided to Earth safely about 10 minutes and 30 seconds after stepping into the void."

Comments

Re:air resistance

[aapold]

Kittinger's story is amazing. He used to call into a florida talk show I listened to when I lived there from time to time to talk about some of the stuff involved with his jump. He is consulting on this attempt, so while this attempt might seem a stunt, at least Kittinger is apparently getting paid for it.