Along with a few of Neil Diamond’s hits, Elton John’s “Rocket Man” is one of my guilty musical pleasures. I love the melody, but the lyrics are also a kick. “Mars ain’t the kind of place to raise your kids/In fact it’s cold as hell.” The Ananova article’s headline — “Rocketman takes to the skies” — caught my eye with its allusion to John’s song. It’s an interesting article with two good photos that accompany the story. I don’t understand how the Rocketman can breathe or stay warm, but can Evel Knievel be far behind?
Via Lucianne.
UPDATE: Randy Tollefson writes with a link to the YouTube video:
As an airline pilot, I’ll tell you that I have absolutely no interest in such a stunt. And as the (potential) father-in-law of a guy now at the Air Force Academy and on his way to AF pilot training, I’ll tell you that if he did this to my daughter, he’d have me to answer to.
But it is fun to watch, nonetheless.
Rich Oliver writes:
He has four small turbine engines under the wing (jets, not rockets). He’s not flying too high – no more than 10,000 feet, which means he would have no problem breathing. It might be a little chilly, but nothing too bad.
Rich also emails a link to a video of the test flight, noting “the music in the clip is ‘Natural Blues’ by Moby.”
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