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Skydiver Aims to Jump From 120,000 Feet, Break the Sound Barrier

If you’re planning to jump out of a plane at 120,000 feet and break the sound barrier, you need a really fancy suit. Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner has been working with a company that makes space suits for astronauts in an effort to pull off a record-setting jump with the Red Bull Stratos project that he hopes will also lead to safer flight suits for future astronauts. Baumgartner, the Red Bull star who has done everything from crossing the English Channel during free fall using a carbon fiber wing, to BASE jumping off the tallest buildings in the world, is planning to ascend to the stratosphere in a pressurized capsule carried by a massive helium balloon. Once reaching 120,000 feet, the plan is to depressurize the capsule, open the door and step off. (via Skydiver Aims to Jump From 120,000 Feet, Break the Sound Barrier | Wired Science | Wired.com)