Space diving
Similar to skydiving, space diving is the act of jumping from an aircraft or spacecraft in near space and falling towards Earth. The Kármán line is a common definition as to where space begins, 100 km (62 mi) above sea level. This definition is accepted by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI), which is an international standard setting and record-keeping body for aeronautics and astronautics. The United States Air Force uses 50 nautical miles (300,000 feet) to award astronaut wings.[1]
No successful space dives (above 100 km) have been completed to date. In 1959
Higher jumps from the mesosphere or thermosphere have yet to be successfully performed, though Orbital Outfitters,[3] now defunct, was working to create a suit that was supposed to enable space diving. Space diving from beyond the stratosphere was first imagined in 1934, appearing in E. E. "Doc" Smith's science fiction novel Triplanetary.[4]
History
The first
On 1 November 1962,
In 1965–1966,
In the early 1990s, Kittinger played a lead role with
In 1997 parachutist and pilot Cheryl Stearns formed Stratoquest,[8] aiming to break Kittinger's record as the first female space diver. Due either to a significant shoulder injury[9] or funding issues for the project[10] this plan did not come to fruition. By the time Stearns was prepared to attempt her jump, Felix Baumgartner had completed his jump and Stearns shelved her event.
In 2012, Felix Baumgartner broke Kittinger's highest altitude and Andreyev's longest-distance free fall records, when, on October 14, he jumped from over 128,000 ft (39 km).[11][12]
In 2014, Alan Eustace set the current world record highest and longest-distance free fall jump when he jumped from 135,908 feet (41.425 km) and remained in free fall for 123,334 feet (37.592 km).[2] However, Joseph Kittinger still holds the record for longest-duration free fall, at 4 minutes and 36 seconds, which he accomplished during his 1960 jump from 102,800 feet (31.3 km).
Challenges to safe space diving
There are several technical requirements and challenges to the possibility of space jumping. These requirements would be somewhat eased when entering the atmosphere from a simple drop, where the heat of reentry would be considerably less than that of reentering from orbit.[13] At any given density of air, the terminal velocity of a person is much lower than that of a heavy spacecraft. This is because starting from a stationary platform means that fall speed never exceeds the local terminal velocity (though this is quite high in thin atmosphere) and a small light body slows down relatively quickly as the atmosphere thickens.
Parachutes would require increased strength to slow the higher weights associated with the added equipment.[14]
NASA is known to have investigated the concept in case of an emergency situation on Space Shuttle orbiters where alternative methods of reentry are not available. However, such planning has not moved beyond the conceptual stage given the high energies involved in reentry from orbital speeds.
See also
- Low Earth orbit, begins at around 160 km
- Project Excelsior, c. 1960, including Kittinger
- MOOSE, a study of an orbital bail-out system using a parachute
- Red Bull Stratos
Jumpers and prospective jumpers
- Yevgeni Nikolayevich Andreyev
- Cheryl Stearns, plans for Stratoquest
- Steve Truglia, plans for Space Jump
- Michel Fournier, Le Grand Saut attempts
- Nick Piantanida, died after Strato Jump III attempt in 1966
- Olav Zipser, Free Fly Astronaut Project
- Charles "Nish" Bruce
- Victor Prather
Highest space dive records | ||
---|---|---|
Altitude | Set by | Date |
23.287 kilometres (76,400 ft) | Joseph Kittinger | 16 November 1959 |
25.458 kilometres (83,520 ft) | Yevgeni Andreev | 1 November 1962 |
31.333 kilometres (102,800 ft) | Joseph Kittinger | 16 August 1960 |
38.969 kilometres (127,850 ft) | Felix Baumgartner | 14 October 2012 |
41.419 kilometres (135,890 ft) | Alan Eustace | 24 October 2014[15] |
Fictional accounts
- In Dark Star, 1974 film, Doolittle decides to 'surf' on debris to the planet or die in the attempt.
- Star Trek: Generations, in a deleted scene from 1994 film which depicts a fictional space jump
- Star Trek: Voyager, in 1998 the season 5 episode 3 titled Extreme Risks which depicts a fictional space jump
- Star Trek, a 2009 film which depicts a fictional space jump
- Ad Astra, a 2019 film which depicts a fictional space jump
References
- ^ Speed Weed (2007-06-25). "High dive - Space diving". Popular Science. Germany , Salzgitter: Bonnier Corporation. Archived from the original on 2012-10-22. Retrieved 2012-10-10.
- ^ a b "Felix Baumgartner: First person to break sound barrier in freefall". guinnessworldrecords.com. 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-09.
- ^ Orbital Outfitters Archived 2012-10-28 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Christensen, Bill (2007-08-03). "Space Diving by 2011?". Space.com. New York. Archived from the original on 2012-10-14. Retrieved 2012-10-10.
- ^ Mission to the edge of Space — Red Bull Stratos — Trailer
- ^ "Stratospheric balloons launched worldwide in 1962", StratoCat
- ISBN 0-316-64303-3.
- ^ "STRATOQUEST (Project) - The balloon encyclopedia". stratocat.com.ar. Retrieved 2019-04-23.
- ^ "Cheryl Stearns personal webpage".
- ^ "STEARNS, Cheryl - The balloon encyclopedia". stratocat.com.ar. Retrieved 2019-04-23.
- ^ The Canadian Press (2012-10-09). "Supersonic skydive cancelled due to high winds". CBC News. Toronto. Archived from the original on 2012-10-12. Retrieved 2012-10-10.
- ^ Amos, Jonathan (2012-10-14). "Skydiver Felix Baumgartner lands highest ever jump". BBC News. London. Archived from the original on 2012-12-23.
- ^ Hsu, Jeremy (2012-10-04). "Why Can't You Go Space Diving Yet?". Space.com. New York. Archived from the original on 2012-10-08. Retrieved 2012-10-10.
- ^ The Kármán line is the internationally accepted definition as to where space begins at 100 km (62 mi) above sea level. This definition is accepted by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI), which is an international standard setting and record-keeping body for aeronautics and astronautics. The United States Airforce uses 80 km (50 mi) to award astronaut wings. Speed Weed (2007-06-25). "High dive - Space diving". Popular Science. New York: Bonnier Corporation. Archived from the original on 2012-10-22. Retrieved 2012-10-10.
- ^ "Google VP's 135,908-foot leap breaks world record for highest free-fall parachute jump". The Verge. October 24, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2014.