It's safe to say that if someone has the nickname "mad", then they're certainly not going to be, you know, un-mad. That's the case for Mad Mike Hughes, a limo-driver in the US who enjoys a spot of being a daredevil on the side. He's previously launched himself in a rocket-powered limo and a steam rocket.
Now, he's planning to launch
himself in a rocket over a ghost town called Amboy in California this weekend. Hughes
is, well, an interesting character. He's a flat-Earther, solidified by the
giant "RESEARCH FLAT EARTH" branding on his rocket from a group of
the same name. He also doesn't really like science, which is a shame, as he
seems quite good at building rockets.
"I don't believe in
science," he told The Associated Press. "I know about aerodynamics and fluid dynamics and
how things move through the air, about the certain size of rocket nozzles, and
thrust. But that’s not science, that’s just a formula. There’s no difference
between science and science fiction.”
That's seriously impressive
if true. Maybe the next von Braun is going to be a guy that doesn't believe the
Earth is round.
On the launch this weekend,
Hughes says he'll travel about 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) through the air
above the Mojave Desert, subjected to speeds of up to 800 kilometers per hour
(500 miles per hour).
When Hughes launched in
2014, the intense G-forces and what looked like a rather shoddy parachute
injured him quite badly; he needed three days to recover. Who knows how it'll
go this time around, but it's safe to say it doesn't look hugely safe.
The launch is going to be
streamed on Hughes' YouTube channel and on his website. You won't be able to watch it live in person though, for safety
reasons. The event is scheduled for between 2 and 3pm local time, when Hughes
will have 70 gallons of water in a tank ready to blast him into the sky. Two
parachutes will bring him back to Earth, hopefully.
In the future, he's
considering dropping a rocket with him in it from a gas-filled balloon, and
rocketing into space by reaching a height of 110 kilometers (68 miles). First,
we just hope he lands safely on Saturday, if it all goes ahead.
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