Felix Baumgartner lands after flying faster than the speed of sound

[Hector]

24 Miles, 4 Minutes and 834 M.P.H., All in One Jump

The dude has a set of steel, that's for damn sure...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/9608140/Felix-Baumgartner-watch-the-jump.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/15/us/felix-baumgartner-skydiving.html?_r=0

That was just some spectacular stuff right there...

[Hector]

The older fella on the left split screen control room is Joe Kittinger...he held the previous space jump record in 1960.

[Hector]

Notice in the beginning, just when he hit terminal velocity...the dude was spinning outta control...I have little knowledge of the actual physics involved with that suit, but he must've passed out momentarily from high G-forces...just like some jet fighter pilots do...then he got his act together...and started diving properly...that was some amazing footage.

[ctc]

Hmmmm....

I watched it as it happened. AWESOME stuff! Best part was the checklist:

control: "36, undo seat belt."

awkward silence

control: "step 36.... undo seat belt...."

more awkward silence....

Don C.

[megocrazy]

It is incredible when you think about it. To think how easily he appeared to do it. It looked just like any regular parachute jump just longer.

[Gorn Captain]

My only question is, why?
Last time he attempted a jump, his right arm was all blown up like the Marsmallow Man, due to a pressure leak.
He could have been a strawberry smoothie inside that suit.

I'll never understand why people risk their lives like this. It's his life, I know, but there are people out there in wheelchairs who would give anything to have a functioning body, and he just risks it all for the thrill.
Like people going to climb Everest and coming back with their fingers frozen off. Their first reaction: "I'm going back next year!"
Yeah, some people have way too many limbs...

[ctc]

>I'll never understand why people risk their lives like this.

It's something you either feel, or you don't. I can understand doing something because nobody else ever did, or doing something for the risk. Sometimes life is boring and stupid and ANYTHING that adds a kick is worthwhile.

I can sort of intellectualize my way through the other side. If you're content with life I can see not wanting to take any big risk like this; but some people are more restless than others....

Don C.

[Hector]

This was not merely a thrill ride...this was careful planning, five years in the making. Many scientific experiments were achieved, for one thing, NASA is now seriously taking a look at that pressure suit, which might prove to be more effective than what current astronauts use. It also opens up for the possibilty of low orbiting astronauts who might be in a really bad situation, to have the option of escaping stranded space vehicles, to safely rescue themselves by hurling back to Earth...this was not a frivolous skydive, this jump had a valid scientific purpose.

[Figuremod73]

I thought this was amazing. Even planned it was a very risky stunt.

Did he have a camera in his helmet? I know some of it was film but the best shots would probably be from his perspective.

[kingdom warrior]

That was friggin amazing i was not home to see it online yesterday....I got weezy when he was jumping out of the capsule he was in.....they should make an action figure of him....lol!

[jimsmegos]

Amazing. Simply amazing. To have that kind of insane bravery is stunning and awe-inspiring. Add to that his incredible composure following the landing, I have to seriously applaud this man. If it had been me (which there is no way in a bazillion years that would happen) I'm sure the only that I would be able to say during the fall, after the fall and probably for teh rest of my life would be the expletive that rhymes with spit. But of course really drawn out.

[MegoMark71]

The doors that his jump are going to open may give way to more exploration of our outer atmosphere.

[Rallygirl]

I showed the video to my 93 year old Grams while she was visiting today. She just shook her head and said, "All the stupid people are not dead,......yet".

[BlackKnight]

I dunno what to think about this .....
I think it's totally Awesome...
But at the Same Exzact thought ...., think it's a 5 minute of Internet Fame That Pushes the Limits of JackAss ....., Don't get me wrong, as I do love me some JackAss.

[theantiquetiger]

The article described him as a daredevil. He is far from it and I almost consider him up there with the Mercury 7 astronauts. Some mentioned his last jump his glove tore. This is not correct. The glove of the old man that set the record 50 years ago tore. His hand swole 2x it's size. He knew it was torn before he jumped but didn't tell ground control because he knew they would scrub the mission.

Most of the people that worked on this space jump yesterday are former NASA employees, furthering the space studies on the private sector.