Skydiver plans head-first freefall from the edge of space in dizzying bid to break Mach 1

But he must wear a special suit to ensure his body fluids don't boil

By IAN SPARKS -13th August 2007

He will leap head-first from a weather balloon 25 miles above Earth and plummet at more than 1,000mph with only a parachute for company.
He will face external temperatures of minus 100c while inside his carbon-fibre suit it will be a stifling 65c - almost 150 fahrenheit.
And most amazing of all, Michel Fournier is actually looking forward to it.
The daredevil Frenchman, a greyhaired 63-year-old former paratrooper, aims to become the first person to break the sound barrier in free-fall.




As he plunges through the stratosphere at supersonic speed, he also hopes to break three more world records - for the longest sky dive, the highest parachute jump and the highest altitude achieved by a human in a balloon.
Despite the intense cold outside, his £35,000 suit will heat up inside when it meets air resistance. His crash helmet will have its own air supply and reinforced ear pads to protect him from the sonic boom as he breaks through the Mach 1 sound barrier.
Fournier was one of three candidates selected in the 1980s to take part in a military endurance test to see whether a parachutist could descend from 125,000ft - almost 24 miles.
The project was shelved in 1988 - but he decided to go it alone. He hopes to make the jump over the Great Plains of Saskatchewan in Canada some time next month, weather permitting.
"I would be lying if I said I wasn't afraid, but I am also very excited," he said. "It really is a leap into the unknown."
After leaping from the balloon, Fournier believes he will break the 760mph sound barrier within 37 seconds.
The lack of friction due to the thinness of the air will mean he can attain a much higher terminal velocity, and his team of scientists estimate he will reach the top speed of 1,113mph before he is slowed down by greater air resistance.
His parachute will not open until six minutes, 25 seconds after jumping and he will finally reach the Earth after around eight and a half minutes.

The record for highest leap was set in 1960 by a U.S. Air Force test pilot, at just under 20 miles.

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Kool.

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"It's normal for these things to empty your wallet and break your heart in the process."
2012 SLK 350
1987 420 SEL

Joe Kittinger is the Air force pilot that currently holds the high fall record.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Kittinger

Last month Popular Science had an article about a suit that you can reenter the atmosphere in the event of abandoning ship in outer space.

I wonder who his insurance company is. And I thought pulling 3 Gs was a big deal, I feel like such a failure.

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"It's normal for these things to empty your wallet and break your heart in the process."
2012 SLK 350
1987 420 SEL

Funk that.

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1989 300E 144K

I guess you try to land in a specific continent.

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MB-less

Hope that parachute opens . . . . If not, I guess they'll never be able to find him, eh?

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" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles

Unless his helmet is lead, and the rest of his body is the fins (Think: yard dart here.).
I think the “head first” thing isn’t going to happen.
Air’s too thin - he’ll be doing the same uncontrollable tumble the last guy did, until he’s lower and thus out of the thin air needed for the speed. Somewhere in there, there could be a gray zone he can aim for. Don't know.

Ear protection from his own sonic boom? Lets think about that.....

The project was shelved in 1988. Hmmm - I wonder why.

Good luck -
Godspeed -

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1980 300D - Veggie Burner !

I still can't imagine what thats gonna do to his body, if there is anything left.

__________________
"It's normal for these things to empty your wallet and break your heart in the process."
2012 SLK 350
1987 420 SEL