![]() ![]() His team identified 16 key risks that had to all be overcome for the record attempt to succeed. ![]() What was the biggest danger that Baumgartner faced? Baumgartner has said that he likes to draw in a sketchbook as a way to clear his mind before a major jump. But due to the hectic schedule on jump day, he was awake several hours before dawn. This involved going to bed precisely 12 hours before the ascent for an eight-hour sleep. How much sleep did he get before the jump? (via team built a schedule to ensure he was fully rested. Baumgartner had a straw inside his helmet to allow him to consume liquids (presumably not a can of Red Bull, his key sponsor). ![]() If his pressurised suit had failed at above 19.2km (the "Armstrong limit", where water boils at body-temperature), he would probably have experienced a usually fatal condition known as ebullism – or the "boiling" of the blood – whereby his body would start to swell painfully within seconds. For the same reason, Baumgartner, much like a deep-sea diver, also "pre-breathed" oxygen for two hours before his ascent in the balloon to help reduce the amount of nitrogen in his blood. In a low-pressure environment, the gas might expand and cause him severe internal pain – a condition known as barotrauma. They wanted his food to pass quickly through his body without any build-up of gas. It was made by a US company called David Clark that has been making suits for astronauts and high-altitude aviators since 1941.ĭid he have to fast before the jump? (via )įor at least a day before the jump, Baumgartner consumed a "low-residue, low-fibre" diet on the orders of his medical team. Finally, the external layer was constructed of Nomex to protect against fire and temperature extremes. A "restraint layer" then helped to maintain the suit's shape. Next was a "gas membrane" that helped to retain air pressure. The internal layer was a "comfort liner". It had four layers consisting of both "breathable" Gore-Tex, and heat- and flame-resistant Nomex. The suit was modelled on those worn by pilots of high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft, but it had never been tried in a free-fall before Baumgartner started testing it. All we know is that he survived, which proves that pre-jump speculation that his body might explode or disintegrate due to the stresses were ill-founded.īaumgartner himself says that he felt very little as he broke the sound barrier because his insulated suit buffered him from external sounds and forces.īaumgartner's suit and helmet were described by his team as "his personal life-support system". Red bull space drop series#One of the jump's key scientific goals was to learn, via a series of monitors on his body, more about what such an experience does to the human body. The precise physiological exertions experienced by Baumgartner's body as he momentarily reached 833.9mph, or Mach 1.24, during his descent are still being studied by his team. Why did he not break up, or pass out, when he went supersonic? The capsule could, in theory, be used again, but the balloon envelope can only be used once. The balloon was deflated via a nylon "destruct line", with the lightweight balloon material – known as the envelope – falling back to Earth to be gathered and removed by truck. It hit the ground 55 miles east of Baumgartner's own landing site. The team remotely detached the capsule from the balloon, allowing it to fall back to Earth under its own parachute. As soon as it was confirmed that Baumgartner had landed safely, the attention of mission control shifted to the balloon and capsule. ![]()
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