Aviation
Blog Story 4: An Insight to the History of Skydiving
Skydiving
is definitely an interesting sport. I have a few friends who have gone
skydiving before, but I have never tried it (not to say I wouldn’t). I’m
guessing it’s probably one of the most exhilarating events one can experience.
The
spark of skydiving is accredited to a man named Andre-Jacques Garnerin. In
1797, he began the art of falling from the sky and floating down with the
assistance of a parachute. Before his time, others had parachuted throughout
history off somewhat high altitudes, but Garnerin was the first to use a non-rigid
parachute.
Garnerian’s
method of falling and parachuting surely was an interesting choice. He floated
up in a balloon with an unexpanded parachute, and cut the balloon free after
reaching approximately 3,200 feet. An observer reported this to be a
“nauseua-inducing fall” because of the rather bumpy ride down. Nonetheless,
Garnerian had survived falling from a great height, starting with an unopened
chute.
‘Falling
from the sky’ continued to grow in the early twentieth century when an Italian
man invented the backpack parachute. The first modern skydiver is claimed to be
Grant Morton, who actually jumped from a Wright Model B plane over Venice
Beach, California in 1911.2 Its popularity increased during World
War II, so that failing balloon pilots could escape the vessel unharmed. Today,
skydiving is typically only used for recreational purposes – and I am thankful
for its continued efficiency, which keeps participants safer.
References
[1] Hubbard, Amy. “When was the First Parachute
Jump? In 1797 When Andre Garnerin Got Dizzy.” Los Angeles Times. 2013. Web. 1
February 2014. <http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-when-was-the-first-parachute-jump-andre-jacques-garnerin-20131022,0,3916977.story#axzz2s7UiPsis>
[2] “The History of Skydiving.” Skydiving. 2014.
Web. 1 February 2014. < http://www.skydiving.com/history-of-skydiving.php>
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