27 Oct 2012 10:44

Art Thompson

Mike Todd

Luke Aikins

Joe Kittinger

“My advice to Felix as he moves on is to take advantage of this opportunity to be an Ambassador for the UN and encourage the youth of the world,” said Col. Joe Kittinger, the mentor who held the records Baumgartner broke in New Mexico. “As for the rest of us, I am sure we will all look for other challenges, but we will never have one as exciting as Red Bull Stratos.”

The Red Bull Stratos team welcomed representatives from over 40 media outlets to Hangar-7 in Salzburg for the first press conference since the day of Felix Baumgartner’s successful jump from 128,100 feet / 39.040 meters on October 14. They shared video capturing the sonic boom Felix’s body created when he passed through the speed of sound.

“We think the sonic boom happened not as he went in to the sound barrier but when he slowed back down, said Dr. Jonathan Clark, the mission’s medical director and formerly a six-time Space Shuttle Crew Surgeon. “We hear the Shuttle when it comes back through the sound barrier; it makes the same noise. And so although this was quieter, when four teams on the ground in New Mexico, including expert personnel, all heard it, we knew that – no question – he broke the sound barrier.”

The team is analyzing the recording, including use of an algorithm typically employed by NASA, to precisely determine where the sonic boom occurred. But in the meantime, technical project director Art Thompson confirmed, “Having reached an estimated Mach 1.24, Felix is now definitely the fastest man on earth.”

Tags: Austria, Felix Baumgartner, Hangar 7, Red Bull Stratos, Salzburg, Luke Aikins, Art Thompson, Joe Kittinger, Mike Todd