Felix Baumgartner

Felix Baumgartner is an Austrian skydiver and BASE jumper known for his 2012 stratospheric jump, which set records for jump altitude and speed.

Red Bull Stratos: A 2012 project in which Felix Baumgartner ascended by balloon and made a high-altitude parachute jump. This was the mission that made Baumgartner internationally known.
Pressure suit: A garment that maintains a survivable pressure environment for people exposed to very low ambient pressure. Baumgartner needed one to remain conscious and protected in the stratosphere.
Joseph Kittinger: A United States Air Force officer who made pioneering high-altitude parachute jumps and advised the Red Bull Stratos project. Kittinger guided Baumgartner through a jump resembling his own earlier record attempt.
Supersonic free fall: A fall in which an object moves faster than the local speed of sound. Baumgartner became the first person to break the sound barrier in free fall without vehicle propulsion.
Stratospheric free fall: A free fall begun in the stratosphere, where thin air changes the conditions of descent. Baumgartner’s record-setting jump began near the edge of space.
Stratospheric balloon: A high-altitude balloon designed to carry payloads through the stratosphere. A helium balloon lifted Baumgartner’s capsule to the jump altitude.
Art Thompson: An American aerospace engineer who served as technical project director for Red Bull Stratos. Thompson led the engineering work behind Baumgartner’s capsule and equipment.
Stratosphere: The atmospheric layer above the troposphere and below the mesosphere. The stratosphere’s low pressure and thin air defined the conditions of the jump.
Roswell, New Mexico: A city in southeastern New Mexico, United States. Baumgartner landed near Roswell after his 2012 ascent from the area.
Free fall: Motion in which gravity is the only force acting on an object, or the dominant force when air resistance is negligible. Baumgartner accelerated under gravity before atmospheric drag limited his speed.

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Publicity stuntRelated: His Red Bull-sponsored jump shows a performer becoming the focal point of a branded stunt.