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'Reentering Earth’s Atmosphere Is the Best Rollercoaster Ride of Your Life'

A GoPro view on what it’s like to reenter the Earth’s atmosphere.

If you're an adrenaline junky, you'd definitely enjoy plummeting back to Earth in a spaceship.

"Re-entering the Earth's atmosphere is the best rollercoaster ride of your life," tweeted European Space Agency astronaut and geophysicist Alexander Gerst, who recorded the experience with a GoPro mounted on his space helmet.

Re-entering Earth's atmosphere is the best roller-coaster ride of your life. https://t.co/cPiYSZVhCL pic.twitter.com/f2Q9jGZH8J
— Alexander Gerst (@Astro_Alex) June 19, 2015

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It's not hard to see why. In a YouTube video released today by Euronews, the fast-speed journey into the Earth's atmosphere in the Soyuz spacecraft looks and sounds pretty radical. Not only do you have to separate your spacecraft into three different parts as you plummet towards earth, you also experience "explosive bolts that violently rip your spacecraft apart."

Image: Imgur

"When you start hitting the atmosphere, you actually see the other parts burning up, and not only do you see that, you can see yourself burning up," explained Gerst.

The never-before-seen @GoPro space helmet-cam view of #Soyuz reentry, as experienced by @Astro_Alex! #bluedot https://t.co/rk1kw0JJQA
— ESA Operations (@esaoperations) June 19, 2015

"You see little parts of your own spaceship disintegrating, melting up, and flying and accelerating up into the plasma, glowing red," he added.

Aside from the visual effects of being in hell fire, re-entry is also tough physically, with your tongue literally trying to suffocate you. "It's hard to breathe, and your tongue wants to get pushed back in your throat so it's really a tough time," said Gerst.

But the fun doesn't end there.

Touch down is literally a crash-landing. "It feels like a little car accident," said Gerst.