Effect of Fall Rate

Forward throw

Freefall drift

Wind shears

Computer model will use “Spaceballs” with fall rate adjusted for the discipline, to remove human factor. Freefly spaceball falls 11,000ft in 50 seconds. RW spaceball takes 65 seconds to fall the same vertical distance. Spaceballs define the “perfect” trajectory.

What is the effect of fallrate? Freeflyers typically fall much faster than formation (RW) skydivers. We can use the freefall trajectory simulator to look at various factors, such as forward throw, freefall drift, and the effect of wind shears. Olav Zipser has introduced the "Spaceball" (a weighted tennis ball) to provide an objective fallrate and trajectory reference for freeflyers. We will imagine a similar RW Spaceball designed to have the slower fallrate of formation skydivers. We can plot their paths from the time of exiting the jumpship. These spaceballs simply follow a fully computable ideal path, unlike a skydiver who may be backsliding, tracking, corking, funneling, etc. The program allows us to change exit order and exit delay and observe the consequences.