CEJ #3

Sophie

February 6, 2012

Daredevil Went Faster than Previously Thought During 24-mile Fall

W.J. Hennigan
LA Times
February 5, 2013
Science
http://www.latimes.com

On October 14, Felix Baumgartner fell 119,431 feet of free fall into a desert in New Mexico. It was recently found out that he went even faster than estimated before. Not only did Baumgartner break the record of highest fall, but he broke the sound barrier too. He went 843.6 miles per hour which is 1.25 miles per hour faster than the speed of sound! The daredevil’s heart rate was 176 beats per minute during the jump and after Baumgartner got into the stratosphere, he had supersonic speed within thirty-four seconds. For thirteen seconds of the fall, Baumgartner began to spin and some became worried he would lose consciousness from “flat spinning.” Baumgartner was weightless for 25.2 seconds of the fall. “It feels like you are floating into space, and then you pick up speed very fast--but you don’t feel the air because the air density is so low,” said Baumgartner, “For almost 35 seconds I couldn't sense the air around me because basically there was none." The shock of opening his parachute for landing was 3.27 times the force of gravity. Baumgartner didn't even know that he broke the sound barrier. “I didn't feel it at all,” he said. In 1960, Joe Kittinger broke the record for highest fall, and when Baumgartner broke it, Kittinger was there to help. Funded by Red Bull, this amazing jump called Red Bull Stratos took a lot to do, and Baumgartner is commended for his bravery.
This article was based off of facts and quotes and did not have a bias. There isn't a side to take, unless it was about what the author thought of the jump. I think that it was extremely brave to jump from such a high point and I’m sure that Baumgartner was very experienced. He must have practiced a lot in smaller situations and his skill showed, especially when he stopped himself from flat spinning. I wonder what was going through his mind as he fell, probably just to stay calm and remember what to do next. When he was up in the capsule I wonder what pushed him to jump? I know that my stomach would have dropped, but since he is so experienced with falling, he may not have felt the same sensation as others would who don’t know what to do. I can relate this to jumping off of a rock at the river. It was obviously nowhere near as high as where Baumgartner jumped from, but when I finally decided to jump off of it, I was glad I did because it was an adventurous experience! This stunt must be a new level for scientists that study speeds and how fast people can go and I hope that new information can come out of this. To jump from such a height is something that know one has done before, and only come close to. Baumgartner must have been worried that he wouldn't be able to make it and I know that I could never jump from over 100,000 feet above the earth. I think that it was a great thing for Kittinger to help with the jump because he knew what Baumgartner was about to do and it must have been a big help for him to be there.