Red Bull Stratos

Red Bull Stratos was a live broadcast about a man named Felix Baumgartner and his mission to jump from a capsule suspended 128,000 feet above the Earth. The narrator of this Red-Bull-sponsored record-setter chronicled the event live as Felix attempted to break the speed of sound. Red Bull Stratos is a scientifically driven project by a committee of previous world-record jumpers like United States Air Force Colonel Joseph Kittinger, sky-diving consultants, and aerospace engineers. Felix's freefall, which successfully surpassed the speed of sound and therefore made him "supersonic," will provide data for future pilots and astronauts, and perhaps support "the development of sub-orbital bailout procedures that don't currently exist" (http://www.redbullstratos.com/science/speed-of-sound). Needless to say, today marked a large step for the scientific community.

Felix Baumgarter has spent the last 5 years preparing for the jump, which required an advanced capsule that could deal with the intense sub-zero temperatures, virtual vacuum atmosphere, and limited supply of oxygen associated with the height of the initial jump, which was over 24 miles above sea level. Even with the advanced technology and training, it was still very likely that Felix would die due to the likelihood that he would start spinning out of control during his descent. If his suit had been ripped, he would've been exposed to temperatures so low his blood would begin boiling. The video paid tribute to his bravery and commended the hard work that goes into pulling off such an accomplishment.

The main rhetorical device shown in the video was the use of repetition to build suspense. Much like Ryan Seacrest on American Idol results shows, the narrator continued to explain what was going on and the numerous records Felix would be breaking, so that any audience just tuning in could catch up quickly, and because there was over two and a half hours to fill of the capsule ascending into space. It was a little boring to listen to, but by the time Felix was stepping out of his capsule, slowly but surely, I was itching to see the jump, so clearly the device worked well.