|
Google executive Alan Eustace broke the world altitude record by parachuting from more than 40km above the earth in a space suit, officials confirmed late Friday. |
A helium balloon carried Eustace to an altitude of 135,908ft (41,419m) above the US state of New Mexico. His free fall broke the sound barrier, reaching a peak velocity of 1,320kph, the Paragon Space Development Corp said.
“It was amazing,” Eustace was quoted as saying. “It was beautiful. You could see the darkness of space and you could see the layers of atmosphere, which I had never seen before.”
The feat surpassed the record set by Austrian Felix Baumgartner, who also jumped in a space suit from an altitude of about 39,000m in 2012.
It was part of Paragon’s project to develop technology for the exploration of the stratosphere above 30,000m.
The 57-year-old Eustace, a pilot and skydiver, is Google Inc’s senior vice president for knowledge.
The balloon ascent took about two and a half hours, Paragon said. Eustace deployed his parachute at an altitude of about 5,500m, and descended under canopy for about 15 minutes.
“I always wondered: what if you could design a system that would allow humans to explore the stratosphere as easily and safely as they do the ocean?” Eustace said.
“With the help of the world-class StratEx team, I hope we’ve encouraged others to explore this part of the world about which we still know so little.”
The feat was accomplished without any advanced fanfare, in contrast to the Red Bull-sponsored jump of Baumgartner.
