Why Skydiving in Antarctica Is Pure Madness

Bright Side

Skydiving is already extreme, but doing it over Antarctica takes things to a whole new level! With freezing temperatures, brutal winds, and almost no room for error, it’s one of the most dangerous jumps on Earth. The air is so thin that skydivers need oxygen just to breathe as they freefall over endless ice. Plus, landing in the wrong spot could leave you stranded in one of the most unforgiving places on the planet. Only the bravest (or craziest) dare to take the leap! Would you ever try it, or is this madness best left to the pros?  Credit: Sidus Space / YouTube Kevin Philipp / YouTube Tom Noonan / YouTube 60 Minutes Australia / YouTube Tom Noonan / YouTube Caters Clips / YouTube Animation is created by Bright Side.  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/   Check our Bright Side podcast on Spotify and leave a positive review! https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD34jRLrMrJux4VxV   Subscribe to Bright Side: https://goo.gl/rQTJZz ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Our Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brightside Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brightside.official TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.official?lang=en Telegram: https://t.me/bright_side_official   Stock materials (photos, footages and other): https://www.depositphotos.com https://www.shutterstock.com https://www.eastnews.ru ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This video is made for entertainment purposes. We do not make any warranties about the completeness, safety and reliability. Any action you take upon the information in this video is strictly at your own risk, and we will not be liable for any damages or losses. It is the viewer's responsibility to use judgement, care and precaution if you plan to replicate.

Transcript

00:00In the summer between 2022 and 2023, over 100,000 people visited Antarctica.

00:12Yep, we're talking about the highest, driest, windiest, and probably the most dangerous

00:19continent on Earth.

00:21But apparently, people like going there for fun, and the number of tourists just keeps

00:25growing.

00:27Most visitors get there on cruise ships, stopping at the temperate, accessible, and wildlife-rich

00:33Antarctic Peninsula.

00:35They usually disembark in Feldes Bay, where they can take inflatable boats for up-close

00:39views of icebergs, humpback whales, penguins, and orcas.

00:44You can also go kayaking, or even check out the wild white landscape by helicopter.

00:53For those feeling a bit more adventurous, there is a different kind of tourist activity

00:58really taking off out there – skydiving.

01:01But be warned, you probably shouldn't try it for your own sake.

01:05For those with a strong heart, free-falling into the majesty of the 7th continent is a

01:10genuine once-in-a-lifetime experience.

01:13But only a few people will ever get the chance to jump there.

01:16Even the companies offering this experience say it is only for really, really experienced

01:21skydivers.

01:22And that's because, even for pros, what should be an amazing adventure can easily

01:27turn tragic.

01:34Just like what happened to a group of six men in December of 1997.

01:38In just 30 seconds, what was supposed to be a thrilling jump turned into a fight for survival.

01:45The group consisted of three Americans, two Norwegians, and one Austrian, all of them

01:50very experienced skydivers.

01:52One of them was a former Air Force captain with about 750 jumps under his belt.

01:57For these guys, skydiving in Antarctica probably felt like just another relaxing hobby, or

02:03maybe even a chance to experience the ultimate taste of freedom.

02:08The first part of their journey went well.

02:10They had to wait four days in Chile for the weather to clear at Patriot Hills, the base

02:14camp located in Antarctica.

02:17So they just hung out at the hotel, waiting for the big day.

02:21The Americans and the Austrian skydiver hoped to set some kind of record.

02:25Since they weren't the first people to jump over the South Pole, they decided to try something

02:30different.

02:31One of them suggested that, instead of each jumping solo, they should try to do some relative

02:36work, as it's called, doing a four-way formation in the sky.

02:40You know when people jump and hold each other's arms and legs?

02:43Well, everyone agreed.

02:45If everything went according to plan, they'd set a world record.

02:48Unfortunately, that didn't happen.

02:55On December 3, they finally flew to Antarctica and stayed at Patriot Hills Camp, where brightly

03:01colored tents were nestled against the Ellsworth Mountains.

03:04It was summer there, so it wasn't as freezing as you might think.

03:07We're talking about temperatures around 14 degrees Fahrenheit.

03:12For a group that didn't know each other well, they quickly bonded like close friends.

03:17After all, they were having the time of their lives, and they were all really passionate

03:21about skydiving.

03:23While waiting for their flight, they sitted up and checked each other's equipment at

03:27least four times.

03:29Then it was time.

03:30They boarded the airplane, and as they climbed to 8,000 feet above the pole, some of them

03:36needed oxygen.

03:37Normally, skydivers don't need oxygen at that height, but this is Antarctica we're

03:42talking about.

03:43The land itself is already over 9,000 feet above sea level.

03:48So at this point, they were actually more than 17,000 feet, where the air is thin.

03:53They risk running low on oxygen, which can mess with your thinking, vision, and reaction

03:58time.

03:59Thin air also creates another problem – less resistance.

04:03You fall faster and have less time to maneuver.

04:06But now, up in the sky, they were probably too excited to fully realize the dangers of

04:11skydiving in Antarctica.

04:13There was no turning back.

04:15At the exit point, they all jumped out, falling through the thin, freezing air at an estimated

04:21200 mph.

04:23During freefall, they might've faced temperatures as low as minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

04:31They were close to breaking a record by forming a shape in the sky, linking their hands and

04:35feet.

04:36But something was off.

04:38One of the Americans, Michael Kearns, felt disoriented because he had no point of reference.

04:43Unlike jumping over a city where you can see trees or buildings to know what's up and

04:47down, Antarctica is completely different.

04:50It's just emptiness for thousands of miles.

04:54The sunlight, snow, and ice all blend together.

04:57Everything looks white.

04:59Pure white.

05:01Kearns quickly checked his gear and realized he was already too low – probably only about

05:061,000 feet up.

05:07That's dangerously low to still have the parachute unopened.

05:11The record attempt was out the window.

05:13Now it was a fight for survival.

05:18He broke away from the formation with his colleagues and reached for the ripcord on

05:21his reserve chute.

05:23But an automatic opening device had already deployed his parachute – likely around 600

05:28feet.

05:29With no time for a safe, controlled landing, he pulled his legs and knees in, flipped over,

05:34and crashed face-first into the snow.

05:38Silence.

05:40Kearns looked around for his friends.

05:43The two Norwegians managed to land safely.

05:45But sadly, the other three men didn't survive the fall.

05:49Two of them never even deployed their parachutes.

05:53To this day, no one knows exactly what went wrong.

05:57But the oxygen bottle on board the plane might be a clue.

06:01The three skydivers who used oxygen during the flight survived, while the three who didn't

06:06use it didn't make it.

06:08As mentioned earlier, a lack of oxygen can mess with your brain.

06:11You might feel euphoric and happy, but hypoxia is dangerous because you often don't realize

06:17it until it's too late.

06:20During the freefall, Kearns tried to warn his colleagues that something was wrong.

06:24They tried waving, but they just looked back at him, smiling, and kept going.

06:29It was like dancing on the deck of the Titanic instead of getting into a lifeboat.

06:34They probably thought they still had more time.

06:37Were they overwhelmed by the adrenaline rush?

06:40Or maybe they were just feeling the effects of hypoxia?

06:44These are questions we will never be able to answer with certainty, but the lack of

06:48oxygen likely made them lose track of their altitude.

06:52The extreme cold didn't help either, as extreme weather conditions can also affect decision-making.

06:58At their jump altitude, the temperature was around minus 58 degrees Fahrenheit, and the

07:03windchill from their speed could've made it feel as cold as minus 200 degrees.

07:14Despite this being a sad story, not all adventure stories in Antarctica end in tragedy.

07:20In 2018, Heather Swan became the first woman to fly in a wingsuit over the icy mountains

07:26of Antarctica.

07:28With her husband by her side, they braved the freezing cold and mustered up all their

07:32courage before jumping from 12,000 feet.

07:35They soared above Union Glacier, a campsite located in Ellsworth Land, reaching insane

07:41speeds of 112 miles per hour.

07:44But once again, we have to say, only very experienced pros can pull off something like

07:49this.

07:50In Swan's case, it took her 18 years of training to be ready to wingsuit in Antarctica.

07:57If you've made it this far, you're probably convinced that skydiving in Antarctica might

08:02not be the best idea.

08:04But what about just visiting as a tourist?

08:06Well, that's a hot topic.

08:09People who've been there say the experience is indescribable.

08:12According to some of them, there's something really healing about being in such a remote

08:16place.

08:17It feels like being in outer space, but still on Earth.

08:21At the same time, the same people who went there are now the ones wanting to protect

08:26it from visitors.

08:28Some of them suggest we enjoy Antarctica from afar because a large number of tourists could

08:33impact its fragile ecosystem.

08:35In 2023, the sea ice cover dropped for 6 months straight.

08:40So experts say visiting Antarctica probably shouldn't be on your bucket list.

08:45Actually, it probably shouldn't be on anyone's bucket list.

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