In 1960 the pilot Joseph Kittinger carried out what must surely be the ultimate fall. He travelled in a balloon to 102,800 feet (31,330 m) - the outer edge of the earth's atmosphpere - and then threw himself out into space. Eventually, at 18,000 feet (5,500 m) he opened a parachute, but most of the journey he spent in free fall.
It is said that, as he jumped, he was sure he would die; and that for him the most testing part was not the thought of death, or the physical pain, but the extreme loneliness at what is really the edge of the world. Even if I didn't know about the background to this image, I would guess that it portrays someone who is risking his life - survival does look unlikely.
In my opinion, the most stunning part is that he came down largely unscathed, took part in a number of similar adventures and is apparently still alive to date. Sometimes life really does tell the best stories - Münchhausen, eat your heart out.
1 comment:
hello,
I've been quite intrigued by this collection of docs on falls... I just happened to be ill, in bed, with resonance in the background and the description of your picture of a woman falling (which isn't up here?) stirred my curiosity. so there i am actually writing something on your blog page... I'm writing in a "comment" box apparently, which probably means this can't be turned into a conversation, and that feels pretty weird to me. Anyway. I think I've always been a little obsessed with jumps too (and falls - the other side of the trampoline?)... Spectacular-acrobatic-gravity-defying skills have always mesmerised me... I have some videos - well at least one - that I thought you could be interested in (basically a life challenging jump!) but don't really know how I could provide you with it. so that's useless. I like your photographs on balance too... although the reason behind the use of kitchen ustensils escapes me... Anyway, best wishes for the future, enjoy the investigation...
Jean
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