Base jumping. The most dangerous kind of extreme.

Why base jumping is considered the most dangerous kind of extreme
Base jumping is rightly considered a more dangerous form of hobby than its ancestor – parachuting. The difference lies in the fact that in parachuting, jumps take place from significantly higher altitudes, to which athletes are delivered using aircraft (airplanes, helicopters, balloons, etc.). At the same time, the recommended distance to the ground, at which it is necessary to open the parachute, is about 500-600 meters. In this case, in case of failure of the main parachute, the person has 10-11 seconds to free from the idle and the deployment of a reserve parachute. Base jumpers jump from a much lower height and the entire flight usually takes less than 6 seconds. Spare parachute just becomes useless. The problem is that due to the lower falling speed, the required exhaust force of the exhaust parachute to open the main dome is simply not enough. Therefore, traditional parachutes are not suitable for base jumping. For this extreme hobby, special satchels and parachutes equipped with large exhaust domes are being developed. Continue reading →