27 October 2014
Following a development programme which remained secret for almost three years, Google executive Dr. Alan Eustace has shattered the world skydiving record with a jump from more than 135,000ft.
This breaks the 128,100ft record set two years ago by Felix Baumgartner, as part of the Red Bull Stratus project, by more than 7,000ft.
Starting before sunrise, Eustace’s helium-filled balloon rose for two hours above the New Mexico desert, near Roswell. When he reached peak altitude, he freed himself by firing a small explosive device, then free-fell back to Earth at speeds of more than 800mph. Eustace even broke the sound barrier, but he has said since that he neither felt nor heard the boom.
Eustace, 57, is a senior vice president at Google and has been described as an engineer with a deep passion for details and as well as a team-oriented leader.
Unlike Baumgartner’s well-publicised record in October 2012, Eustace planned his jump in secret with a small group of fellow engineers and technologists helping design the gear and plan logistics. Reportedly he even declined support from Google, where he is vice president of search, as he didn’t want his stunt to become a public relations event.
