The highest/mach1freefall jump is set for today

[Sam]

Delayed again....

It's today or probably not this year... no more spare balloons. Pretty expensive for a one shot only attempt!

 

[tifosi]

damn... back an hour already... again!

 

[Bailey]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jK-NcRmVcw&feature=related

The Final Countdown

Give it some Wellie

 

[tifosi]

gotta love 80's rock.... had a mullet once upon a time!

 

[philiporchard]

Is this the channel to watch?

http://www.youtube.com/redbull

Or is it being shown elsewhere?

 

[Bailey]

http://www.redbullstratos.com/live/

This is the one i'm using - which I think is the same

 

[Bailey]

gotta love 80's rock.... had a mullet once upon a time!

Yeah me too , Now look at me - Never went for the Perm look though, that was a step too far

 

[tifosi]

Bit of a difference in the clocks between the redbullstratos site & the youtube embedded stream.

UPD: Back in synch now

 

[Bailey]

Quite a long feature just on the BBC news explaining fully the full-risk about the launch and the first 3,000 ft explaining if anything goes wrong before reaching that height - he will die, purely because none of the safety chutes would have time to open. And the Balloon is most vulnerable at the lower heights, being designed for the high atmosphere conditions at 120,000 ft.

and given the balloon alone has a height equivalant to a 55 storey building. The Launch crew are not worried about the Jump itself but are shitting - themselves in regard to this critical first 3,000 ft

 

[Bailey]

Sound feed has started - only for an update, thats predicting a GO.

The BBC news also talked about the last two (an American and a Russian) that both died making a similar attempt. Both due to 'Visor failure" on exit. At only 2% of the air pressure (and oxygen) at ground level, evidently the blood also boils away in a matter of seconds.

Interesting that today is also the 50th anniversary (to the day) of Chuck Yeager breaking the Sound Barrier for the very first-time in X-1.. The naysayers predicted he would die due to the "pressure-wave" wonder what he would have thought of doing it without a Plane at the time

 

[tifosi]

The foot pump is out!

 

[Bailey]

Looks like they are going to Launch early - in the next 5-10 mins

 

[tifosi]

8mins... loving all the extra data on the RBS/live/ site

 

[Bailey]

This is going to be one of the biggest world-wide audiences for a web broadcast ever

 

[Bailey]

Go go go

 

[tifosi]

Oh, Wow!

 

[GreyWing]

Where is the best place to watch it?

Take it they are not showing it live on sky in case he loses it.

 

[tifosi]

redbullstratos.com/live 20s delay-ish

 

[GreyWing]

Cheers mate

 

[GreyWing]

That's a great feed by the way, all to often these things get built up and the tech lets it down under the strain.