The balloon material is made from polyethylene with a 1mm thickness.
Felix will hit supersonic speeds within 30 seconds of jumping out of his balloon.
The highest free fall for Felix was ~33,000 feet when he crossed the English Channel back in 2003.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=audZVa2OxcM]
Felix will land in North America. Launch site and date are TBD based on weather conditions.
The entire trip will be documented with specially designed cameras that are strapped to the capsule and Felix himself.
Nokia will have an app available via the Ovi Store that monitors everything leading up to the jump including Felix’s biometric data. You can also watch the jump live via the app.
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David Clark has built Felix’s suit, which is based on the S1034 suit. Joe Kittinger’s pressurized suit from 1960 was also made by David Clark.
Joe’s flight in 1960 was financed by the US Air Force. Felix’s flight is backed by Red Bull.
Felix spends most of his time in a pressure chamber at Beale Air Force Base.
Red Bull Stratos team:
Felix Baumgartner – Test Jump Pilot
Art Thompson – Technical Project Director
Dr. Jonathan Clark – Medical Director
Col. Joe Kittinger [Ret.] – Flight Operations and Safety, Capcom I
Einar Enevoldson – Flight Operations, Capcom II
Mike Todd – Life Support Engineer
Near Space Corp – Red Bull Stratos Balloon Launch Operations
David Clark – Full pressure suit manufacturer
This will be Felix’s last project. Baumgartner will move on to be a helicopter pilot for fire and rescue teams.
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Felix and Art have been conceptualizing this particular project since 2005. Stratos began coming together in 2007.
This is crazy: if Felix sweats too much too early in his jump, he runs the risk of said perspiration freezing over inside the suit.
More info can be found at Red Bull Stratos
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