Zenith - The Ultimate Challenge
Clear for take-off for the ultimate challenge!
Wearing the all-new El Primero Stratos Flyback Striking 10th chronograph, Zenith Ambassador Felix Baumgartner is taking the plunge in the summer of 2012: the Austrian will jump out of a capsule suspended from a balloon in the stratosphere at an altitude of over 120,000 feet / 36.5 kilometres, nearly four times higher than passenger planes typically fly. A mission to the very edge of space labelled Red Bull Stratos, the project will attempt to transcend human limits that have existed for more than 50 years and smash four world records:
- the highest manned balloon flight
- the highest freefall
- the longest freefall time
- and, for the first time in history, breaking the sound barrier with the human body.
Supported by a team of experts, Felix Baumgartner will ascend to 120,000 feet / 36,576 metres with a stratospheric balloon and make an unprecedented freefall jump - accelerating from a standstill to 700 miles/hour / 1,125 kilometres/hour or more and rushing toward earth at supersonic speeds before parachuting to the ground. This attempt to dare atmospheric limits represents the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for the adventurer and provides valuable medical and scientific research data for future pioneers. Zenith Manufacture is one of the main sponsors and sole timekeeper of this extremely dangerous mission.
The Red Bull Stratos team brings together the world's leading minds in aerospace medicine, engineering, pressure suit development, capsule creation and balloon production. The team includes retired United States Air Force Colonel Joseph Kittinger, who has ascended to a height of 102,800 feet / 31,333 metres and currently holds three of the records Felix Baumgartner will strive to break.
In preparation for this landmark event, on March 15, 2012, Felix Baumgartner executed a balloon jump from an altitude of 71,615 feet / 21,828 metres, making him only the third person in history to successfully complete a freefall from such an altitude. A second and last test will be undertaken between July and September.
Carefully considered risks
The inevitable risks involved in attempting such a feat have been painstakingly evaluated - and there are plenty of them! Dr. Jonathan Clark, the medical director of the mission, explains that there will a number of challenging physiological moments for Felix Baumgartner, whose data will be closely monitored and recorded throughout the mission. There are several critical phases during the ascent and freefall. At launch the wind must be no more than 2 to 4 miles/hour / 3 to 6 kilometres/hour to enable the capsule and 55 storey-high balloon to lift off safely. However, during the first 1,000 feet / 305 metres of ascent, Felix Baumgartner will be unable to perform an emergency exit as there will not be enough altitude for an emergency parachute deployment.
On the way up, beginning at around 63,000 feet / 19,200 metres, Felix Baumgartner will pass the "Armb Line", a point where the air pressure becomes so low that without the pressurization of a capsule or spacesuit, body fluids would vaporize, in other words start to "boil" at normal body temperature.
During the test jump from 71,615 feet / 21,828 metres in March 2012, Felix Baumgartner passed through a level of the stratosphere where the temperature plunged to -90 degrees Fahrenheit (-68 degrees Celsius). Felix Baumgartner will experience the environment of near space at 120,000 feet / 36,576 metres. It's the vacuum of space and extreme cold.
The fact that air resistance is much lower in the stratosphere than at lower altitudes will allow Felix Baumgartner to accelerate quickly, as he attempts to break the speed of sound in approximately the first half-minute of his freefall before gradually being slowed by increasingly dense air. Controlling his body position despite such intensely rapid acceleration will be an extraordinary feat. The mission pilot will be protected during his fall by a pressurized space suit. He says "This is truly a leap into the unknown. No one can predict how the human body will respond when it crosses the sound barrier in a near space environment".
On the way down, Dr. Clark points out that the scientists have taken all possible measures to prevent Felix Baumgartner from falling into an uncontrollable 'flat spin' on the way down. "Flat spin is a genuine threat. The primary concerns during a flat spin are the eyes, the brain, and the cardiovascular system. If the centre of rotation is in the upper part of the body, blood rushes toward the feet, which can cause a blackout. If the rotation is centred in the lower part of the body, blood rushes toward the head, potentially causing a condition called "red out" with effects that can range from a feeling of pressure in the head to an ocular hemorrhage and intercranial hemorrhage (bleeding in the brain). The longer the spin lasts, the more dangerous it becomes."
During his test jump from 71,615 feet / 21,828 metres, Felix Baumgartner was able to control his stability very effectively, using his skydiving skills. As a safeguard, Felix Baumgartner has a specially developed parachute system with a meter that will deploy a drogue stabilization parachute automatically if he experiences 3.5 Gs for more than 6 continuous seconds. He can also deploy the drogue manually by pressing a button attached to his glove.
Felix Baumgartner himself has spent several years studying the risks and preparing mentally and physically. "Breaking the speed of sound in freefall is a pioneering effort and being a pioneer requires risk. I don't have to put myself in danger to be happy. But I do need to have a challenge. This is the ultimate skydive." His mentor Joe Kittinger, retired U.S. Air Force colonel and current record holder, is also confident his protege will succeed. "I always tell Felix Baumgartner that he needs the 'Three Cs' - confidence in his team, confidence in his equipment and confidence in himself. At this stage, he's got all that."
A watch for the ultimate airborne challenge
Accuracy and reliability have been the watchwords of the Manufacture Zenith, manufacturer of navigational chronometric instruments for civil and military aviation since 1865. The fact that one of its timepieces will be the first to break the sound barrier in a near space environment with Felix Baumgartner will once again prove the brand's reliability under extreme conditions. Zenith timepieces are indeed well accustomed to "trials by fire", such as that undergone by the famous El Primero, the first automatic high-frequency chronograph, that crossed the Atlantic fixed to the landing gear of a Boeing 707 in 1970, on the AF015 flight from Paris to New York. Subjected to drastic changes in temperature, pressure and terrible jolting, it imperturbably maintained its regular cadence of 36,000 vibrations per hour and required no adjustment, having remained accurate to the nearest second - apart from the inevitable timezone difference.
Like all models in the brand range, this model is indeed entirely in tune with the corporate values of authenticity, daring and pleasure. Authenticity, since it embodies the brand's pioneering spirit and the excellence of traditional craftsmanship. Daring, as reflected in its conception and construction. And of course pleasure, because it is intended to delight the wearer of the watch troughout his dreams.
As the faithful heir of the Rainbow Flyback model developed for the French Air Force in 1997, the Stratos is equipped with the world's most accurate automatic chronograph movement - the legendary El Primero - as well as the Striking 10th and Flyback functions, making it an eminently suitable partner for Felix Baumgartner's exploit. Watches and cockpit flight instruments are subjected to abrupt variations in pressure, intense vibrations and violent accelerations - from 9 Gs to 11 Gs. Thanks to its robust construction, the El Primero Stratos can withstand it all - and will be right there with Felix Baumgartner as he tests the edge of the human envelope.
First watch to cross the sound barrier in a near space environment.
On a visual level, the three different counter colours echo the first El Primero chronograph launched in 1969 with a three-tone dial that was extremely unusual at the time and designed to enhance readability. The darker anthracite-grey colour for the hours counter at 6 o'clock accentuates the length of time being recorded, while the light-grey colour of the small-seconds counter at 9 o'clock symbolizes the fleeting nature of time, and the midnight-blue minutes counter at 3 o'clock epitomizes the intermediate nature of this unit of measurement.
In addition to the chronograph, the El Primero Stratos is also equipped with the Striking 10th function, which serves to read off 1/10ths of a second and is combined with the flyback mode that is particularly useful in the field of aviation and a favourite with pilots - since it enables instant resetting of the chronograph functions in one smooth, easy move.
Zenith and the El Primero striking 10th
This mission in the stratosphere will test the reliability of Zenith watches under the most extreme conditions: temperature, low pressure, speed, friction, impacts, etc. If the jump is successful, Zenith will be the first to have a watch cross the sound barrier in a near space environment. Zenith CEO Jean-Frederic Dufour explains what spurred him to participate in this mission: "We have often been forerunners in unexplored domains and we have accompanied people in there most incredible projects. It is this ability to come up with new ideas, and then push through with new technical developments before anyone else, that is most fascinating at Zenith. Our watches have participated in some of the grandest human adventures: explorer Roald Amundsen's discovery of the North and South Poles; Mahatma Gandhi's peaceful fight for India's independence; the laying of the foundations of ecology by the learned Prince Albert I of Monaco; Louis Bleriot's Channel crossing; John F. Kennedy's political action; intrepid explorer Colonel John Blashford-Snell in various endeavours such as his latest expedition to Nepal; as well as Johan Ernst Nilsson in his daring Pole2Pole mission. Felix Baumgartner is made of the same stuff as these pioneers and we are very excited that the El Primero Stratos Flyback Striking 10th will accompany him on his exploit."
A contribution to humanity
Like any transportation system, high-altitude flights need safety procedures. Currently, however, researchers don't know if it's possible to bail out from ultra-high altitudes. What would happen to a human falling to Earth faster than the speed of sound? Would a spacesuit provide sufficient protection? Would GPS equipment function? Could a drogue parachute provide stabilization? Worldwide, the answers to such questions are vital. Aviators and astronauts are looking to extend the boundaries of their exploration and the day when everyday people can become space tourists is on the horizon. The findings of the Red Bull Stratos mission may point the way toward developing escape systems for the space tourists of the future, as well as for the pilots and astronauts who already need suborbital systems today.
Red Bull Stratos aims to provide information that will further the progression of aerospace safety. Key potential benefits for the science community include:
• development of a new generation of space suits - including enhanced mobility and visual clarity - and other systems to lead toward passenger/crew exit from space.
• development of protocols for exposure to high altitude/high acceleration.
• exploration of the effects on the human body of supersonic acceleration and deceleration, including development of the latest innovations in parachute systems.
Minimizing high-altitude risks
Unprotected exposure in this near-vacuum area of the stratosphere, even for just a few seconds, is survivable only with aggressive medical care. Felix Baumgartner's pressurized capsule and space suit are life-support systems designed to minimize such high-altitude risks. Additionally, until now, no known medical protocols had been established to deal with significant exposure to these hostile elements, but the Red Bull Stratos team has developed new treatment protocols in case of an emergency.
Equipment up to the task
Pressure suit and helmet
The exterior of the full-pressure suit is made of a material that is both fire retardant and an insulator against extreme cold (likely to be around -10 degrees Fahrenheit when Felix Baumgartner jumps and possibly -70 degrees Fahrenheit or lower during his descent). Inside, the suit's "bladder" is filled with gases to provide pressurization. The helmet's oxygen regulator will provide Felix Baumgartner with 100 per cent oxygen from various sources.
Capsule
The pressurized Red Bull Stratos capsule is designed to serve as a life-support system during the nearly three-hour ascent to jump altitude. Felix Baumgartner will be positioned in its interior pressure sphere, a space just 6 feet / 1.8 metres in diameter that contains the capsule's instruments and is pressurized to reduce the risk of decompression sickness without requiring Felix Baumgartner to inflate his suit during the ascent. More than 150 drop tests were conducted by engineers to develop crush pads that provide shock absorption for the data capture equipment during the capsule's parachute landing.
High-altitude balloon
Thinner than sandwich wrap, the Red Bull Stratos balloon is filled with lighter-than-air helium, much like other high-altitude balloons. Helium is the ideal gas because it lifts, is non-toxic, and non-flammable. The balloon's vast envelope is constructed of banana-peel-shaped strips, or "gores," of high-performance polyethylene (plastic) film that is only 0.0008 inches thick. In total, these strips cover 40 acres - or enough to wrap about 5,018,400 peanut butter sandwiches!
Parachutes
No parachute is guaranteed for higher than 25,000 feet, but Felix Baumgartner will jump from 120,000 feet/36,576 metres. Specially developed to meet his needs, Felix Baumgartner's parachute rig is truly next-generation and includes a main parachute, emergency chute, unique stabilizing drogue, and oxygen system. If all goes according to plan, Felix Baumgartner will deploy only his main chute. To do so, he'll need to slow from the speed of sound to approximately 172 miles/hour. If, however, Felix Baumgartner experiences uncontrollable spinning or instability in his attempt to reach the speed of sound, he can deploy the small drogue stabilization chute, which is designed specifically to steady him even at supersonic speeds.
About Felix Baumgartner
Born in Salzburg, Austria in 1969, Felix Baumgartner began skydiving at the age of 16 and polished his skills as part of the Austrian military's demonstration and competition team. In 1988, he began performing skydiving exhibitions for Red Bull. The company's out-of-the-box thinking and Felix Baumgartner's adventurous spirit clicked, and they've collaborated ever since.
By the 1990s, Felix Baumgartner felt that he'd gone as far as he could with traditional skydiving, so he extended his canopy skills with BASE jumping - meaning parachuting from a fixed object or landform. He finds that the lightning-fast reflexes and precise techniques required by such low-altitude feats also enhance his high-altitude skydiving technique.
Best known for completing an unprecedented freefall flight across the English Channel using a carbon wing, Felix Baumgartner has made world-record BASE jumps and has been nominated for a World Sports Award and two categories in the NEA Extreme Sports Awards. He is also a prominent advocate for the nonprofit Wings for Life Spinal Cord Research Foundation and a licensed helicopter pilot. And, while he acknowledges that the Red Bull Stratos mission is a step into the unknown, his determination to reach the edge of space and break the speed of sound is unshakable. "If Red Bull Stratos is successful, we can share data that hasn't been available ever before," Felix Baumgartner states. "I would be proud to be able to make such a contribution."
Key records and accomplishments
2012 - (March 15)
First Red Bull Stratos test jump with high-altitude balloon and pressurized capsule: Freefall from 71,615 feet / 21,828 metres over Roswell, NM. Maximum speed: 364.69 miles/hour / 586.92 kilometres/ hour. Felix Baumgartner is the third person to leap from such an altitude and survive.
2007
B.A.S.E. jump into the second biggest cave in the world, "Seating of the Spirits", Oman (396 feet).
B.A.S.E. jump off the world's tallest building - 101 Tower, Taipei (1669.95 feet)
2006
B.A.S.E. jump from the highest building in Latin America, Torre Mayor in Mexico City (738 feet).
B.A.S.E. jump from the highest building in Scandinavia, Turning Torso, Malmö, Sweden (627 feet).
Felix becomes a helicopter pilot at Twin Air Helicopter School, Van Nuys, USA.
2005
Star guest at the famous Late Night Show with Jay Leno, Los Angeles, USA.
2004
Channel of Corinth: B.A.S.E. jump from a 193 feet high bridge in freefall.
Mamet Cave in Velebit National Parc, Croatia: B.A.S.E. jump into a 623 feet deep cave.
Bridge of the Americas, Panama: B.A.S.E. jump from the 393 feet high Panama bridge.
World record: B.A.S.E. jump from the highest bridge in the world, Millau Bridge, France (1,125 feet).
2003
Man Vs. Machine Race: Main Stunt at Taurus World Stunt Awards in Hollywood/USA.
Channel Crossing from Dover to Calais: First to cross the English channel in freefall.
2002
Added to the "Street of Champions" in Vienna, Austria. Others honored here are Arnold Schwarzenegger, George Foreman, Pele and Carl Lewis.
2001
Nominated for the World Sports Award in London, Royal Albert Hall. Category: Extreme Sports.
Nominated for the NEA Extreme Sports Award in Munich. Category: Special Achievement.
2000
Nominated for the NEA Extreme Sports Award in Munich. Category: Special Achievement.
1999
World record: highest B.A.S.E. jump from a building, the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (1.479 feet).
World record: lowest B.A.S.E. dive from the Christ Statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (95 feet).
1997
World Champion title for B.A.S.E. jumping in West Virginia, USA.
Zenith - Histoire
1875
Success comes rapidly. In 1875, the company already has over one thousand employees. It creates pocket watches, pendulum clocks and counter instruments for the navy.1896
Georges Favre-Jacot is awarded a gold medal at the Swiss National Exhibition in Geneva. Four years later, honours at the Universal Exhibition in Paris. These prizes and awards, acknowledging the quality and the precision of his timepieces, continued to increase over the years. The company with its thousand talented workforce sails through the 20th century in glory: 1565 awards and over 50 mythical movements.1911
In 1911, Georges Favre-Jacot decides to give the company, which still bore his name, a lasting identity. He names it "Manufacture ZENITH". According to the legend, as he was walking one night under a starry sky in the Swiss mountains the idea came to him to give to his best movement, and later also to the company, the name of the highest point in the sky. A star hence became the symbol of the company, evidencing the special importance that Georges Favre-Jacot saw between mechanical time and cosmic time.1920
In 1920, the company has already produced two million timepieces. The desire to communicate this passion further afield sparks the idea of opening branches in Geneva, Moscow, Paris, Vienna, London and New York... Carried by the thrust of this magnificent effort, ZENITH starts its international history. This is ongoing: today, ZENITH has 17 subsidiaries and its business is equally shared between America, Europe and Asia.1930
During the 30s, also because of the progress achieved in fields such as civil aviation, the watchmaking industry is required to offer greater precision. A benchmark in the production of high quality mechanical movements, ZENITH Manufacture diversifies its production and its marine pieces were to be found on seaplanes of the French navy, on board Royal Navy vessels, as well as the Italian and British navy.1940
During the 40s and the years that followed the war, ZENITH Manufacture goes back to basics and thanks to its experience and maturity, decides to concentrate on its core business. Faithful to its innovative spirit and its faith in progress, new automatic movements are developed, in a quest for the perfect movement.1969
In 1969, throbbing at 36,000 vibrations per hour, the El Primero movement is born, the first integrated automatic chronograph, a triumph over the challenge to fit in the smallest possible space a maximum of technical functionality. Today it still is the fastest automatic chronograph and the most precise in the world. The end of this decade also sees the arrival of quartz. ZENITH Manufacture takes up the challenge, whilst still preserving its precious tooling awaiting the return of mechanical movements that it considers inevitable. In doing so it does not lose its heart, or its soul.1980
Whilst the beautiful mechanical watches are once again riding the wave, ZENITH Manufacture has all the necessary equipment to relaunch the El Primero movement. Having become famous, it is in great demand, also by other prestigious watchmakers.1994
Animated by exuberant dynamism, it creates new watches, like the extra slim Elite movement. Thanks to its outstanding know-how in traditional watchmaking, ZENITH Manufacture enters the third millennium with confidence and an even greater desire for innovation and modernity.1999
The LVMH Group (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy) acquires ZENITH Manufacture, a rare pearl that it wants to turn into a leading star of watchmaking in the 20th century.2001
The rebirth: ZENITH searches the depths of its past hundred years to reinvent itself. Drawing inspiration from the legacy of its young and brilliant founder, ZENITH forges a unique style, classical and yet innovative, the link between tradition and modernity.2002
During the Basel Watch Fair in 2002, ZENITH launches 4 new movements and 14 new models representing 52 new variations. History is on the move...2003
Launch of the Chronomaster Open El Primero, a technological innovation enabling a view of the beating heart of the movement through an opening in the dial. This model rapidly becomes the icon of the ZENITH Manufacture and encounters a resounding success. The company also decides to turn its attention to ladies and offer them a range in their image, beautiful and intelligent: the Star. Great enthusiasm ensues. Sales of this segment show continuous growth and today have reached a third of total production. The production facilities are modernised with the new digital manufacturing technology. However, the watchmaker's craft remains at the centre of it all and old manual or semi automatic skills are reinstated (angling and decorating craftsmen...).2004
The first Tourbillon ZENITH: integrated to the El Primero chronograph, it is the fastest Tourbillon in the world. Thanks to this watchmaking masterpiece, the ZENITH star now shines high in the heavens of the most prestigious Watchmakers. It obtains the "Grand Prix de l'Horlogerie" in Geneva, the prize for men's watch. The Grande Chronomaster Open El Primero is awarded the "Best Watch of the Year 2004".2005
The first Haute Couture watch is launched: the Starissime, a tourbillon embellished with over 230 diamonds, designed for an exceptional woman. ZENITH Manufacture also endows itself with one of the most complicated watches in the world, the Grande Class Traveller Repetition Minutes El Primero: a chronograph, an alarm clock, with a vibrating mode, a date display, dual time and, of course, a minute-repeater. One hundred and forty years after its creation, ZENITH shines at the highest point: the zenith.2006
Launch of the new DEFY collection. An unexpected design, avant-garde technology, unique style.2007-2008
« Grand Prix de l'Horlogerie » in Geneva : the ZENITH Manufacture received the award for the DEFY Xtreme Open El Primero Stealth in the Public's Prize category. An unusual design, avant-garde technology, unique style, extraordinary performance. A true revolution in aesthetics and technology that has confirmed ZENITH's global success whilst opening up new horizons: the sports watch revisited by the spirit of luxury.
[Rating: 5 / 5 stars]
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