Le Grand Saut (The Great Leap)

20-Year Journey for 15-Minute Fall, NY Times

“He has spent two decades and nearly $20 million in a quest to fly to the upper reaches of the atmosphere with a helium balloon, just so he can jump back to earth again. Now, Michel Fournier says, he is ready at last. Joe Kittinger has the longest recorded jump from a balloon, from 102,800 feet in 1960. Depending on the weather, Fournier, a 64-year-old retired French army officer, will attempt what he is calling Le Grand Saut (The Great Leap) on Sunday from the plains of northern Saskatchewan.”

Le Grand Saut (The Great Leap), Official website

Balloon blows away free fall record bid, CNN

“French skydiver Michel Fournier’s bid for a record-breaking parachute jump from Earth’s stratosphere was aborted Tuesday when the balloon that was to carry him into the far reaches of the sky slipped away from his flight crew.”

Today’s Video: Space Diving, earlier post

“First Man in Space – Skydiving From The Edge Of The World (Extended Version) // On August 16, 1960, Joseph Kittinger jumped his last … all ” Excelsior jump, doing so from an air-thin height of 102,800 feet (31,334 meters). From that nearly 20 miles altitude, his tumble toward terra firma took some 4 minutes and 36 seconds.”