Muere Mike Hughes, el «terraplanista» temerario

Su nombre tomó a la Web por asalto. Conductor de limusinas y temerario de profesión, Mad Mike Hughes dijo que construiría un cohete para probar que la Tierra era plana. Contra todos los pronósticos, su cohete casero tomó vuelo en marzo de 2018, y logró sobrevivir a aquella loca aventura. Sin embargo, su historia mediática terminó bajo una nota trágica el sábado pasado, después de salir disparado en un nuevo lanzamiento al noreste de Los Ángeles…

Conducía limusinas para vivir, pero el resto del tiempo se dedicaba a alimentar a su personaje de «temerario DIY» que le permitió aparecer en los medios de casi todo el mundo. ¿El nombre? Mad Mike Hughes. ¿Su objetivo? Convertirse en un astronauta casero para comprobar si la Tierra era plana o no. Aquellos cercanos a él aseguran que usó al terraplanismo como maniobra publicitaria, y desde cierto punto de vista, dicha maniobra fue un éxito. Preparado para extender su «éxito parcial» en marzo de 2018, Hughes y su equipo se dirigieron a un terreno privado en Barstow, a poco más de 190 kilómetros al noreste de Los Ángeles. ¿El plan? Superar la barrera de los 1.500 metros (5.000 pies).

Mad Mike Hughes just launched himself in a self-made steam-powered rocket and crash landed. Very likely did not survive. #MadMike #MadMikeHughes pic.twitter.com/svtviTEi8f
— Justin Chapman (@justindchapman) February 22, 2020

Lamentablemente, Hughes pagó allí el último precio. El vídeo compartido en Twitter por el periodista independiente Justin Chapman nos enseña que el cohete de Hughes experimenta una falla catastrófica momentos después de su lanzamiento, perdiendo todo su sistema de paracaídas. El resto de la trayectoria errática lo hizo caer de forma libre a unos 150 metros del punto de partida. Las autoridades se presentaron en el lugar a las dos de la tarde, y la oficina del alguacil local confirmó la muerte de Hughes tras el impacto.

View this post on Instagram

By now I’m sure many of you have heard that Michael J. Hughes – ‘Mad’ Mike – perished yesterday during a rocket launch. Although there were many things we disagreed on, we found commonality in his perspective of the human condition. He had a soft spirit and empathy for the world that contrasted with his public persona. He was often lonely and felt his accomplishments as a daredevil had been forgotten. Ultimately, he just wanted to lead a meaningful life. He had very little money, but he found a way to bring excitement and purpose to his life by doing affordable stunts with rockets that he built himself using spare parts. His flat Earth perspective brought attention and needed funds to his stunts, but it was a double-edged sword that also brought him ridicule. He didn’t really care if the Earth was flat, and was fully ready to concede his error once he could see it with his own eyes in a final stunt that he was working towards – going 62 miles up to the edge of space in a contraption known as a rockoon. The stunt that took his life was never intended to prove anything; it was just another way for Mike to raise awareness and funding. The filmmakers are deeply saddened at the news of Mad Mike. We didn’t know what to expect when we decided to document his unusual life, and were fully prepared to dismiss him and his crazy ideas – but we ended up going on an incredible adventure and we gained new perspectives on how people view the world and our place in it. As Carl Sagan said, “We should confront ignorance with kindness” – something that’s not always easy to do, and sorely lacking in today’s world. Right now, many are laughing at Mad Mike, but as Mike said, “If you can’t laugh at me, then you need to get a better sense of humor!” No one laughed harder at Mad Mike Hughes, than himself. He will be deeply missed. www.RealRocketman.com ? #thisisrocketman ? by @tobybrusseau Filmmakers: @tobybrusseau @directorlinn

A post shared by Rocketman. The Movie. (@thisisrocketman) on Feb 23, 2020 at 8:13am PST

La grabación del lanzamiento sería utilizada en la próxima serie «Homemade Astronauts» que el Science Channel (bajo el ala de Discovery) estrenará durante este año. El documental «Rocketman: Mad Mike’s Mission to Prove the Flat-Earth» se encargó de registrar parte de la vida de Hughes y sus personas más cercanas el año pasado, dejando un conmovedor homenaje en su perfil de Instagram. Más allá de las burlas en Internet, del escepticismo y del riesgo inherente en sus acciones, Mad Mike Hughes dejó este mundo bajo sus términos, y no hay muchos que puedan decir eso.

Fuente: ScienceAlert