A 55-year-old paraglider has shared his survival story and video after being unexpectedly lifted by a powerful updraft into the upper atmosphere during a flight over the Qilian Mountains in China.
Peng Yujiang, a certified B-level paraglider, reached an altitude of 8,598 meters without oxygen, and narrowly escaped death.
What started as a calm session quickly turned dangerous when a sudden surge of wind pulled him into rapidly forming cumulonimbus clouds. He became trapped in the cloud system.
Without an oxygen mask and with his face exposed, Peng endured freezing conditions as ice crystals formed. Peng says he suspects he may have briefly lost consciousness during his eventual descent.
