1,000 miles an hour!!!!!

[RazBerryBeret]

A 64-year-old retired French army officer will attempt to jump/skydive from 130,000 feet, breaking all kinds of records.

He intends to climb into the pressurized gondola of the 650-foot balloon, which resembles a giant jellyfish, and make a two-hour journey to 130,000 feet. At that altitude, almost 25 miles up, Fournier will see both the blackness of space and the curvature of the earth. He will experience weightlessness.

Then he plans to step out of the capsule, wearing only a special space suit and a parachute, and plunge down in a mere 15 minutes.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/24/sports/othersports/24jump.html?_r=1&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&oref=slogin


Can you imagine the feeling? What a rush, I don't think I would attempt it, but I have jumped from 10,000 feet, and it WAS a rush!!!!

[BlooInBloo]

1. I heard about that. Won't he get a bit warm?

[immoderate]

2. He won't be weightless...

If he is weightless, why would he plunge?

--IMM

[bananas]

5. Yes, he will be weightless.

If he stood on a scale, the scale would register 0 pounds, because the scale would be falling at the same rate.

[mach2]

7. Well, he will be "weightless" right when he jumps out but will "gain weight"

as he approaches terminal velocity (when drag becomes equal to weight.)
:-)

[bananas]

8. Yes, the weightlessness at high altitude is because the air is so thin

that it doesn't cause much resistance to gravity.
As the air gets thicker during his fall, he will gradually experience weight again.

[mach2]

10. It's pretty easy to calculate Vt at low altitudes, it's around 60 M/S for a falling human

but is obviously a lot faster that far up. I don't know what air density is at that altitude, I'm surprised a balloon can even get that high...but it's pretty much above the atmosphere so the 1000 mph figure might actually be about right. If he pulls it off (argh, he's 64 YO!)...it will be interesting to hear his impressions, like if there was really any sensation of speed.
:-)

[bananas]

12. Here's a webpage with some interesting information

It has a table listing estimates of terminal velocity at 130,000 feet,
the estimates range from 300 to 500 m/s.
It also discusses the current record, set in 1960:

http://hypertextbook.com/facts/JianHuang.shtml

Speed of a Skydiver (Terminal Velocity)

The Physics Factbook™
Edited by Glenn Elert -- Written by his students
An educational, Fair Use website

<snip>

On 16 August 1960, US Air Force Captain Joseph Kittinger entered the record books when he stepped from the gondola of a helium balloon floating at an altitude of 31,330 m (102,800 feet) and took the longest skydive in history. As of the writing of this supplement 39 years later, his record remains unbroken.

The air is so thin at this altitude that it would make for a moderate laboratory vacuum on the surface of the earth. With little atmosphere, the sky is essentially black and the sun's radiation is unusually intense despite polar temperatures.

Sitting in my gondola, which gently twisted with the balloon's slow turnings, I had begun to sweat lightly, though the temperature read 36 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. Sunlight burned in on me under the edge of an aluminized antiglare curtain and through the gondola's open door.

The density of air at 30 km is roughly 1.5 % that at sea level and thus drag is essentially negligible.

No wind whistles or billows my clothing. I have absolutely no sensation of the increasing speed with which I fall. (The clouds) rushed up so chillingly that I had to remind myself they were vapor and not solid.

This is not true for skydivers at ordinary altitudes, which is why they reach terminal velocity and cease to accelerate.

According to Captain Kittinger's 1960 report in National Geographic, he was in free fall from 102,800 to 96,000 feet and then experienced no noticeable change in acceleration for an additional 6,000 feet despite having deployed his stabilization chute. This gave him an unprecedented 3900 m (12,800 feet) over which to accelerate. At such extreme altitudes the acceleration due to gravity is not the standard 9.81 m/s2, but the slightly lower value of 9.72 m/s2. Using these numbers, it is possible to calculate the maximum theoretical velocity experienced during this record-setting jump. The result is amazingly close to the value recorded in National Geographic.

<snip>

[mach2]

14. Son of a gun. I'm surprised we never discussed this in college...I was a sophomore

in Aeronautical Engineering in 1960 and if I ever heard about this guy, I forgot...and that's not the kind of thing I'm inclined to forget. :-) Heck, I still remember most of the basic aerodynamic formulae.

[RazBerryBeret]

16. My younger brother is an aeronautical Engineer.

he now works for air force intelligence, travels the world, but can't talk about what he does.
he just got back from the Netherlands....

[mach2]

17. Well, I was in the AF back in the 1970s but not doing anything secret.

I can't pass up the chance to say air force intelligence is an oxymoron, though. ;-)

I worked for a Lt. General, boss of NORAD and other top-ranking poobahs...most were nice enough guys but barely had sense to come in out of the acid rain.

[RazBerryBeret]

18. haha, I agree w/you about AirForce/Intelligence...

Like I said it's my little brother!!! he lived with me while he was going to Ohio State University. I had a job where I traveled frequently to NY, I've never been too big on flying (although skydiving ONCE was a blast!) but when I had to leave for the airport, my brother would always say, "don't worry about flying, remember someone like me designed the airplane"....Used to drive me NUTS!!! hahaha!!

[mach2]

19. Actually I never worked as an engineer all that much...mostly as a commercial/corporate pilot.

Many is the time I thought, similar to your bro, someone like me designed this thing. :D

[wtmusic]

6. Yes

Weight vs mass

[FarCenter]

3. He will experience weightlessness.?

Not until he steps out of the capsule.

[ironflange]

9. My question too

You're right, of course. It's surprising that the Times would let such a blatant mistake get through.

[muriel_volestrangler]

15. Looks like someone told them

It now reads:

"At that altitude, almost 25 miles up, Fournier will see both the blackness of space and the curvature of the earth.

Then he plans to step out of the capsule, wearing only a special space suit and a parachute, and plunge in a mere 15 minutes, experiencing weightlessness along the way."

[Skrelnick]

4. I think an American did this in the 1960s or 70s

It was pretty cool!

[angrycarpenter]

11. Look for the story of Col. Joe Kittinger

I think that is his name. A very amazing story from the dawn of the space program. His record still stands.

edit for link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Kittinger
Joseph Kittinger - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[eppur_se_muova]

13. He tried this in 2002 and 2003, and (apparently) 2006 ...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=228&topic_id=22204&mesg_id=22204

BTW, this is still a ripping good yarn! Learn all about the 'space race' of the 1920's-50's!

---->http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1591147484.01._BO2,204,203,200_PIlitb-dp-500-arrow,TopRight,32,-59_AA240_SH20_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg