A free-falling Frenchman is determined to jump from high in the stratosphere into the record books. Calling it the Le Grand Saut, or "The Super Jump", Michel Fournier is readying himself and the technology needed to attempt a skydiving record.
The 58-year-old Fournier and his team are waiting out rainy weather conditions in Saskatchewan, Canada hoping to have a shot this month at the highest parachute jump from some 25 miles (40 kilometers) altitude.
On D-day (Dive-day), a stratospheric balloon will carry Fournier skyward. Slung from the balloon is a pressurized capsule that houses the aeronaut as he ascends up to jump height. Wearing a special airtight and ultra-low temperature space suit, he is to free fall for a little over six minutes.
During that time, the daredevil will go supersonic, reaching a maximum speed of Mach 1.7 and break the sound barrier on his way down to terra firma.
Four records in one
Lifting off from the vast plains of Saskatchewan, Fournier hopes to snag four world records in one jump:
- altitude record for free-fall;
- altitude record for human balloon flight;
- time record for longest free-fall;
- and a speed record for the fastest free-fall.
A former colonel of the French army reserve and parachute officer, Fournier has 8,500 jumps to his credit. He has made over a hundred sky dives from very high altitudes.
Floating to jump altitude in a small "spacecraft", the skydiver will be protected against ultraviolet rays and low temperatures.
Rescue run through
Preparations for the jump, Fournier suggests, have proven useful for several fields, such as aerospace medicine and especially the technology of high altitude rescue jumps for the crews of endangered space shuttles. Precautions have been taken to protect the skydiver as he slices through the upper stratosphere with a "bang" - breaking the sound barrier.
The Super Jump team believes the project simulates a full-scale rescue of a team of astronauts after reaching a critical high altitude. Furthermore, the high altitude hop will help discern problems encountered with jet streams that can run in opposite directions within a short distance of each other.
After 3 hours of liftoff, Fournier is to take one small step, but a giant leap into thin airand uncharted territory.
Over 40 years ago, U.S. Air Force Colonel, Joe Kittinger jumped from 102,800 feet (31,333 meters), a high altitude record that still stands today, but is unofficial. If successful, Fournier will top Kittinger's 1960 pioneering jump, diving from 130,000 feet (40,000 meters) and landing back on Earth under parachute.
Jean-Francois Clervoy, an astronaut with the European Space Agency, is with Fournier as he prepares for the sky drop. Clervoy is the patron of the exploit.
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