Teddy breaks world sky diving record

Felix Baumgartner wowed the earth and space when he skydived from the edge of space to earth. Now his world record has been broken – by a teddy bear.

290813_Bear_Sky_Dive_YouTube.jpg

Babbage the bear fell 39,000 metres breaking previous records. (YouTube)

High altitude balloonist and teddy-owner, David Akerman loaded Babbage the bear into a weather balloon filled with hydrogen at the launch site in Berkshire, England, last Saturday.

A Raspberry Pi credit-card sized computer acted as the bear’s flight control centre and took Babbage 39,000 metres through the air - 31 metres higher than Baungartner’s 2012 record.

The launch capsule had been connected to an over-the-shoulder camera, similar Baumgarten, which allowed Mr Akerman – and the world - to see Babbage’s fall from the balloon, while a second camera in the bear’s eye socket send video and photo of the fall back to earth.

Share

1 min read

Published

Updated

Source: SBS


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world