Interview with ‘Jet Stream Superman’, Marc Hauser

BBC World News Interview with Marc Hauser: On the 30th of June 2018 Swiss skydiver Mark Hauser succeeded to be the first human flying with a normal jumpsuit in free fall within the jet stream. At an altitude of 7600m, a temperature of -40C and with a 139kmh tailwind he jumped out of a hot air balloon between Condobolin and Forbes in NSW Australia. In free fall he covered 5.8km over ground with a maximal speed of 271kmh. The purpose of Marc's mission is the promotion of high-altitude wind power as a cheap and clean energy source. The award winning documentary filmmaker Claudio von Planta followed Marc's preparations over 2 years. Marc and Claudio also filmed several engineering startup companies who have already developed impressive prototypes, which are able to turn high-altitude winds into electricity. The technology looks convincing and could kickstart a new revolution in energy production.

Wearing just a normal skydiving suit and with a limited oxygen supply Marc Hauser leapt from the balloon at a height of 7,400 meters in -40 degrees temperatures into a 137 kph Jet Stream. Flying at a near 45° angle Marc reached a top speed of 270kph at 5,600m before deploying his parachute at 2,000m and landing at a farm near Forbes, 290km west of Sydney, Australia. In free fall he covered a horizontal distance of 5,9km/ 3.66miles.

The jump was intended to highlight the untapped energy in high altitude winds that have the potential to supply large quantities of wind power. Chasing The Jet Stream is a documentary showing the fascinating science behind high altitude winds and following Marc Hauser on each step of his journey to harness their energy as well as discovering the technical obstacles he had to overcome while exploring the cutting edge science behind high altitude wind generation.