A WORLD renowned BASE jumper is planning to freefall to earth from the edge of SPACE.
His stratospheric mission, Red Bull Stratos, will see Baumgartner break four world records — and provide important data to NASA scientists.
He said: "I want to push the limits of what is possible."
Baumgartner will be dressed in a protective suit and flown to 120,000 feet in a pressurised capsule before making his jump.
He believes he will be able to break the speed of sound — 768mph — within 35 seconds.
In 1960, United States Air Force Captain Joe Kittinger made aerospace history by freefalling from 102,800 feet.
This achievement set the groundwork for the United States' first space program.
Col Kittinger has been advising Baumgartner on safety and bringing his extensive experience to the programme.
Over the past half-century, many have tried to surpass Col Joe Kittinger's feat but none have succeeded — and some have died in the attempt.
Baumgartner is known for his boundary-breaking projects, such as freefalling across the English Channel wearing a winged suit.
He also set the world record for the highest parachute dive from a building when he jumped from the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
BASE jumpers Nasr Al Niyadi and Omar Al Hegelan broke this record on January 8 when they leapt from the top of the Burj Kahlifa in Dubai — the world's tallest skyscraper.
Over the last two years Baumgartner has been preparing himself mentally and physically to attempt this new challenge.
His mission will help researchers document the effects of high-speed travel on the human body, and further explore mankind's ability to travel at the edge of space.
BASE jumping is considered a dangerous extreme sport. BASE stands for the four categories of surfaces jumpers can leap from — Buildings, Antennae, Spans (bridges) and Earth (cliffs).
Their jumps are broken at the last minute by small, tightly-packed parachutes.
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His stratospheric mission, Red Bull Stratos, will see Baumgartner break four world records — and provide important data to NASA scientists.
He said: "I want to push the limits of what is possible."
Baumgartner will be dressed in a protective suit and flown to 120,000 feet in a pressurised capsule before making his jump.
He believes he will be able to break the speed of sound — 768mph — within 35 seconds.
In 1960, United States Air Force Captain Joe Kittinger made aerospace history by freefalling from 102,800 feet.
This achievement set the groundwork for the United States' first space program.
Col Kittinger has been advising Baumgartner on safety and bringing his extensive experience to the programme.
Over the past half-century, many have tried to surpass Col Joe Kittinger's feat but none have succeeded — and some have died in the attempt.
Baumgartner is known for his boundary-breaking projects, such as freefalling across the English Channel wearing a winged suit.
He also set the world record for the highest parachute dive from a building when he jumped from the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
BASE jumpers Nasr Al Niyadi and Omar Al Hegelan broke this record on January 8 when they leapt from the top of the Burj Kahlifa in Dubai — the world's tallest skyscraper.
Over the last two years Baumgartner has been preparing himself mentally and physically to attempt this new challenge.
His mission will help researchers document the effects of high-speed travel on the human body, and further explore mankind's ability to travel at the edge of space.
BASE jumping is considered a dangerous extreme sport. BASE stands for the four categories of surfaces jumpers can leap from — Buildings, Antennae, Spans (bridges) and Earth (cliffs).
Their jumps are broken at the last minute by small, tightly-packed parachutes.
Daredevil to leap from space | The Sun |News
Helping Haiti - donate here | The Sun
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