Posted on 10/20/2001 4:17:01 PM PDT by aculeus
AN AUSTRALIAN former commando is preparing to leap from a balloon floating in near-space 25 miles above the ground in an attempt to become the world's highest skydiver.
Rodd Millner, 37, hopes to freefall for six minutes before opening his parachute and touching down within 30 miles of Ayers Rock in central Australia. He said: "A man in space has never achieved this, but research indicates the transition will be safe and smooth."
He appears undaunted by warnings from scientists that the descent through near-space could be so fast that his head will explode.
Millner plans to make the jump early next year wearing a pressurised spacesuit, and will have a camera attached to his body so that millions of viewers can watch live on television.
He was inspired by the attempts of the entrepreneur Richard Branson to fly around the world in a balloon. Millner said: "I've always respected those who have pushed the boundaries in life.
"Branson wrote that the last great balloon challenge was to circumnavigate the world. I disagree because, in my opinion, balloons were designed to go up - not around."
Millner plans to ascend in a gondola beneath a specially built balloon that will inflate as it rises until it becomes as wide as two jumbo jets. At 130,000ft - about 25 miles up - he will jump out.
The unofficial world record for the highest skydive was set at 102,000ft by Joe Kittinger, an American, in 1960.
Boeing 747s rarely fly higher than 35,000ft. "Anything beyond 60,000ft is known as the dead zone," said a spokesman for the Space Jump project's scientific team.
"No one really knows what might happen to Rodd. That's why he needs a pressurised spacesuit - he'll be diving from the edge of space."
The main danger is a lack of oxygen. Despite the suit, Millner could lose consciousness, in which case the parachute is equipped with a remote control that should ensure that it opens at a prescribed altitude.
Millner began intensive training for the jump in July. His backers include the Australian Defence Force Academy as well as several media companies.
Millner, a former member of the Australian Army's Reserve 1st Commando Regiment special forces unit, has always yearned for extreme experiences. He has been filmed with leopard sharks while scuba diving off the coast of Thailand, was ranked No 1 in Australian kung fu in the mid-1980s and has snowboarded and abseiled down mountains.
Walt Missingham, the project director, said millions of pounds had already been invested in the jump, from which scientific data will be gleaned on the human response to extreme conditions.
For his part, Millner insists that the dive is not a stunt, but a scientific experiment. "It's extreme science," he said.
The jumper will achieve supersonic speeds.
A key risk is that he starts to spin (on a vertical axis) faster and faster, until the centrifugal G-forces kill him. (The blood vessels in one's head might essentially explode.)
Did his head explode? Is it buried with him? Is it scattered over the steppes?
A key risk is that he starts to spin (on a vertical axis) faster and faster, until the centrifugal G-forces kill him. (The blood vessels in one's head might essentially explode.)
At the risk of sounding stupid .... wouldn't air resistance even at 60,000 feet be enough to keep him subsonic ?
If not, well, falling never killed anyone .... it's the deceleration that's the b!tch.
Ancient Druid saying meaning "Let's get out of here even if we have to walk". (Rocket Ship Galileo, Robert A. Heinlien.)
The air resistance above that level is essentially nil, for practical purposes. Where there is not enough to breath, there is not enough to slow you down much (and there is not even enough to breathe at 30,000, with much less at 60,000, and 120,000 almost in space.)
Whatever happened to Joe? Did he suffer any kind of brain damage I wonder.
Very interesting! Never even thought of that.
Well, at least if his head explodes we will get to see it on TV.
Cordially,
Never jump/fall from a height where the distance of the fall is longer than the length of a scream.
My skydiving instructors taught us that "Out of 10,000 feet of fall, it's the last half inch that hurts the most".
Their answer to the question "what happens if neither chute opens" was "Cross your right leg over your left leg, raise your arms and cross the right over the left, and fall feet first." What will that do?" Response; "It'll make easier to screw you out of the ground." What a fun loving bunch.
Regards
J.R.
Just in case, don't use one of those cameras attached to you helmut. It might get broken.
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