Falling to earth

[falcon2]

A while back I watched a history channel show on a guy who was testing space suits, or emergency space rescue procedures by jumping out of a weather baloon at very high altitues. I wanted to look up some more info on these test, but I have forgotten the guys name, and the project name. Anyone out there with a better memory?

[GaryM]

IIRC, back in the late 40s, early 50s there was a fellow who bailed out of a high altitude ballon at somewhere around 90 to 100 thousand feet or so. He was wearing a pressure suit of some kind.

Today I'd imagine they'd just use a low pressure chamber. Much more controlled environment.

[Fillet]

The show was called To the Edge of Space: Project Manhigh, and you can buy the tape of the show from A&E (http://store.aetv.com/cgi-bin/ae.storefront/0/Ext/OutsideFrame/UT/32/Product/42467). The guy who did all the high-altitude jumps as part of Project Excelsior (http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/history/postwwii/pe.htm) was Capt. Joseph Kittinger. The Air Force Museum has a little blurb about him here (http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/eagles/kittnger.htm).

There were a couple of other pilots - Major David Simons and Lieut. Clifton McClure - who also made high-altitude flights in balloons as part of Project Manhigh, but I don't recall whether they also made high-altitude jumps. There's a picture of the capsule that Simons flew in here (http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/space_flight/sf11.htm). :eek:

Neat program.

[malden]

The other day I heard a story on NPR's All Things Considered about a woman who is starting to train for a world-record-setting high-altitude jump-- from 165,000 feet! :eek: She will be wearing a pressure suit. I think they said the current record is 120,000 feet. They described this altitude as "pretty much in space," which I think is being a little too generous, as I always thought space was officially designated as 50 miles up (264,000 feet).

A short summary can be found here (http://search.npr.org/cf/cmn/cmnps04b.cfm?SegNum=113031&SegDate=10/25/2000&prg_id=2&show_id=21301).

[Spectre of Pithecanthropus]

Originally posted by malden
The other day I heard a story on NPR's All Things Considered about a woman who is starting to train for a world-record-setting high-altitude jump-- from 165,000 feet! :eek: She will be wearing a pressure suit. I think they said the current record is 120,000 feet. They described this altitude as "pretty much in space," which I think is being a little too generous, as I always thought space was officially designated as 50 miles up (264,000 feet).

A short summary can be found here (http://search.npr.org/cf/cmn/cmnps04b.cfm?SegNum=113031&SegDate=10/25/2000&prg_id=2&show_id=21301).
Sounds like that would be a record balloon ascent, as well.
I'm pretty sure nobody's ever been that high in a balloon before.