is 120,000 feet really the “edge of space”? thats what like 22 miles?
I always thought 40 miles was the cut-off but apparently it’s 100,000 feet.
Yes. The atmosphere is very small, relative to the size of the Earth. If the Earth was the size of a gumball, the atmosphere would be thinner than a cellophane wrapper. Mount Everest is 27,000 feet above sea level and there’s almost no oxygen up there.
It’s called ‘near space.’ Depending on who you talk to space starts at either 50 miles or 62.5 miles (100km).
I always thought the magic number was 50 miles. I could be wrong.
Not really, but you have to be going pretty fast to notice the difference. You have to fly about 50 miles to earn Astronaut wings. X-15 pilots did. But other than those, you had to be "Spam in a Can" to earn those wings , before the advent of the shuttle. Soon you will again.
"The one thing I would like. I would like to learn how to spell Connecticut. Don't ask me why." -- Small Time Crooks by Woody Allen
120000 feet is 250/11 or 22.72727272... miles
I saw a show on TV featuring a British reporter getting a ride in the U2 up to 70000 feet. It LOOKS a lot like space at that altitude, as the overhead sky gets dark, and the clouds below appear distant. Of course, the plane is still flying, but I would say yes, 120000 feet is at the edge of space.