Red Bull Stratos, or the Red Bull Space Jump, was a high-altitude skydiving project involving Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner. On 14 October 2012, Baumgartner flew approximately 39 kilometres (24 mi) into the stratosphere over New Mexico, United States, in capsule N502FB carried by helium balloon before free falling in a pressure suit and then parachuting to Earth. The total jump, from leaving the capsule to landing on the ground, lasted approximately ten minutes. While the free fall was initially expected to last between five and six minutes, Baumgartner deployed his parachute after 4 minutes and 19 seconds. Reaching 1,357.64 km/h (843.6 mph)—Mach 1.25—Baumgartner broke the sound barrier on his descent, becoming the first human being to do so without any form of engine power. Measurements show Baumgartner also broke two other world records. With a final altitude of 38,969 m (127,851 ft; 24 mi), Baumgartner broke the unofficial record for the highest manned balloon flight of 37,640 m (123,491 ft) previously set by Nick Piantanida. He also broke the record for the highest-altitude jump, set in 1960 by USAF Colonel Joseph Kittinger, who was Baumgartner's mentor and capsule communicator at mission control. These claims were verified by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI). Baumgartner's height record has since been surpassed by Alan Eustace.
History In January 2010, New Scientist reported that Baumgartner was working with a team of scientists and sponsor Red Bull GmbH to attempt the highest sky-dive on record, using a helium balloon. By wearing the Equivital LifeMonitor, researchers were able to monitor Felix Baumgartner's physiological response within an extreme environment. Baumgartner was going to make the 36,600 m (120,100 ft) jump from a capsule suspended from a balloon filled with helium, intending to become the first parachutist to break the sound barrier. This would be possible because while the normal terminal velocity of a skydiver freeflying is about 320 km/h (200 mph or 90 m/s), the high altitude with less-dense atmosphere would decrease drag. On 12 October 2010, Red Bull announced it was placing the project on hold after Daniel Hogan filed a lawsuit in California Superior Court in Los Angeles, California, USA in April, claiming he originated the idea of the parachute dive from the edge of space in 2004 and that Red Bull stole the idea from him. The lawsuit was resolved out of court in June 2011 and on 5 February 2012, it was reported that the project would be resumed.
Preparation
On 15 March 2012, Baumgartner completed the first of two test jumps, from 21,818 metres (71,581 ft). During the jump, he spent approximately three minutes and 43 seconds in free fall, claiming to have reached speeds of more than 580 kilometres per hour (360 mph), before opening his parachute. In total, the jump lasted approximately eight minutes and eight seconds and Baumgartner became only the third person to parachute safely from a height of over 21.7 kilometres (13.5 mi). On 25 July 2012, Baumgartner completed the second of two planned test jumps, from 29,460 metres (96,650 ft). It took Baumgartner about 90 minutes to reach the target altitude and his free fall was estimated to have lasted three minutes and 48 seconds before his parachutes were deployed. Baumgartner landed safely near Roswell, New Mexico, USA. His top speed was an estimated 863 kilometres per hour (536 mph) according to Brian Utley, an official observer on site. The jump represented a personal best for Baumgartner. Joseph Kittinger, who parachuted from 31,300 m (102,800 feet) in 1960, became involved with the mission to advise Baumgartner and to help gather scientific data on next-generation full pressure suits.
Mission
Aborted launch The project's original scheduled launch on the morning of 9 October 2012 was delayed five hours because of weather problems. Technicians at the launch site also found that one of the capsule's communication radios was faulty. At 11:42 MDT, the launch was aborted due to a 40-kilometre-per-hour (25 mph) gust of wind at the launch site. The launch was rescheduled for the morning of 11 October, but the project's meteorologist announced that the date would again be postponed.
Launch The capsule was launched from Roswell International Air Center at 09:30 MDT (15:30 UTC) on 14 October 2012, which was also the 65th anniversary of Chuck Yeager's Bell X-1 flight. The weather at launch was clear, with south-easterly winds blowing at 5.5 kilometres per hour (3.4 mph). The ground temperature was 14 °C (57 °F). Baumgartner's ascent took approximately 21⁄2 hours, after which the capsule levelled at approximately 38 kilometres (24 mi). A valve in the balloon was used to vent gas to control the ascent. Shortly after passing the Armstrong limit, Baumgartner expressed concerns that his visor heater was not functioning properly. Mission Control continued with the mission, and 40 minutes later announced that the jump would continue regardless of the reported problem. An abort procedure—which would have seen helium vented from the balloon to allow the capsule to descend—was considered. After approximately 2+1⁄2 hours of ascent, Baumgartner and mission control began the egress procedures. This involved depressurisation of the capsule, detachment of his umbilical air supplies, and adjusting the capsule interior ready for decamp. As the final checks were being undertaken, Kittinger said to Baumgartner, "OK, we're getting serious now, Felix".
Jump and descent Fifteen minutes after the egress checks began, the pressure between the capsule and the outside stabilized and the door opened. One of the last items was for Baumgartner to enable his suit cameras.
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