Austrian skydiver sets live view record on YouTube

Austrian daredevil Felix Baumgartner broke a number of records with his breathtaking edge-of-space skydive yesterday -- and not just the highest jump from a platform (128,100 feet), the longest distance free-fall, (119,846 feet) and becoming the first skydiver to break the sound barrier (with a maximum vertical velocity of 833.9 mph or Mach 1.24). He was also responsible for notching up the most simultaneous live views on YouTube to date.

According to Google, over eight million people (myself included) visited the live stream to watch Baumgartner jump from a capsule attached to a giant helium balloon some 24 miles (39km) above the Earth and land safely around nine minutes later, nonchalantly touching down almost -- as a friend described it -- as if stepping off a bus.

Celebrating his achievements, Google says in a blog post: "We congratulate Felix Baumgartner and the entire Red Bull Stratos team for their successful mission, and for creating a live stream with the most concurrent views ever on YouTube."

If you missed the Red Bull Stratos stunt live you can watch highlights from the mission and other videos relating to it on the official YouTube channel.