[DeTomaso] NPC: Little Known Aviation Records

[John McKee]

Talk about your extreme sports!
That is impressive to say the least.
There is plenty of info on the internet about the jump including a You Tube 
video (of course).
Here is a picture of his step out into space.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Kittinger-jump.jpg

John
4488

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mike Thomas" <mbefthomas at comcast.net>
To: "'mail list Pantera'" <detomaso at realbig.com>
Sent: Sunday, January 27, 2008 11:10 AM
Subject: [DeTomaso] NPC: Little Known Aviation Records


> Breaking the Sound Barrier Without an Aircraft -
>
>
> Joe Kittinger is not a household aviation name like Neil Armstrong or
> Chuck Yeager. But what he did for the U. S. space program is comparable.
>
> On Aug. 16, 1960, as research for the then-fledgling U. S. space program,
> Air Force Captain Joseph Kittinger rode a helium balloon to the edge of
> space, 102,800 feet above the earth, a feat in itself. Then, wearing just
> a thin pressure suit and breathing supplemental oxygen, he leaned over
> the cramped confines of his gondola and jumped--into the
> 110-degree-below- zero, near-vacuum of space. Within seconds his body
> accelerated to 714mph in the thin air, breaking the sound barrier. After
> free-falling for more than four and a half minutes, slowed finally by
> friction from the heavier air below, he felt his parachute open at 14,000
> feet, and he coasted gently down to the New Mexico desert floor.
>
> Kittinger's feat showed scientists that astronauts could survive the
> harshness of space with just a pressure suit and that man could eject
> from aircraft at extreme altitudes and survive. Upon Kittinger's return
> to base, a congratulatory telegram was waiting from the Mercury Seven
> astronauts-- including Alan Shepard and John Glenn.
>
> More than four decades later Kittinger's two world records--the highest
> parachute jump, and the only man to break the sound barrier without a
> craft and live--still stand. We decided to visit the retired colonel and
> Aviation Hall of Famer, now 75, at his home in Altamonte Springs,
> Florida, to recall his historic jump.
>
> Joe, take us back to New Mexico and Aug. 16, 1960.
> Joe Kittinger: We got up at 2 a. m. to start filling the helium balloon
> At sea level, it was 35 to 40 feet wide and 200 feet high; at altitude,
> due to the low air pressure, it expanded to 25 stories in width , and
> still was 20 stories high! At 4 a. m. I began breathing pure oxygen for
> two hours. That's how long it takes to remove all the nitrogen from your
> blood so you don't get the bends going so high so fast. Then it was a
> lengthy dress procedure layering warm clothing under my pressure suit.
> They kept me in air- conditioning until it was time to launch because we
> were in the desert and I wasn't supposed to sweat. If I did, my clothes
> would freeze on the way up.
>
> How was your ascent?
> It took an hour and a half to get to altitude. It was cold. At 40,000
> feet, the glove on my right hand hadn't inflated. I knew that if I
> radioed my doctor, he would abort the flight. If that happened, I knew I
> might never get another chance because there were lots of people who
> didn't want this test to happen. I took a calculated risk, that I might
> lose use of my right hand. It quickly swelled up, and I did lose use for
> the duration of the flight. Bu t the rest of the pressure suit worked.
> When I reached 102,800 feet, maximum altitude, I wasn't quite over the
> target. So I drifted for 11 minutes. The winds were out of the east.
>
> What's it look like from so high up?
>
> You can see about 400 miles in every direction. The formula is 1.25 x the
> sq. root of the altitude in thousands of feet. (The square root of
> 102,000 ft is 319 X 1.25 = 399 miles) The most fascinating thing is that
> it's just black overhead--the transition from normal blue to black is
> very stark. You can't see stars because there's a lot of glare from the
> sun, so your pupils are too small. I was struck with the beauty of it.
> But I was also struck by how hostile it is: more than 100 degrees below
> zero, no air. If my protection suit failed, I would be dead in a few
> seconds. Blood actually boils above 62,000 feet.
>
> I went through my 46-step checklist, disconnected from the balloon's
> power supply and lost all communication with the ground. I was totally
> under power from the kit on my back. When everything was done, I stood
> up, turned around to the door, took one final look out and said a silent
> prayer: "Lord, take care of me now." Then I just jumped over the side.
>
> What were you thinking as you took that step?
> It's the beginning of a test. I had gone through simulations many
> times--more than 100. I rolled over and looked up, and there was the
> balloon just roaring into space. I realized that the balloon wasn't
> roaring into space; I was going down at a fantastic rate! At about 90,000
> feet, I reached 714mph. The altimeter on my wrist was unwinding very
> rapidly. But there was no sense of speed.
>
> Where you determine speed is visual--if you see something go flashing by.
> But nothing flashes by 20 miles up--there are no signposts there, and you
> are way above any clouds. When the chute opened, the rest of the jump was
> anticlimactic because everything had worked perfectly. I landed 12 or 13
> minutes later, and there was my crew waiting. We were elated.
>
> How about your right hand?
> It hurt--there wa s quite a bit of swelling and
> the blood pressure in my arm was high. But that went away in a few days,
> and I regained full use of my hand.
>
> What about attempts to break your record?
> We did it for air crews and astronauts-- for the learning, not to set a
> record. They will be going up as skydivers. Somebody will beat it
> someday. Records are made to be busted. And I'll be elated. But I'll also
> be concerned that they're properly trained. If they're not, they're
> taking a heck of a risk.
>
>
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