Stockton resident Douglas Spotted Eagle made history May 31 by synchronizing a skydiving jump with four other individuals about two miles over the ocean as the space shuttle Discovery was launched by NASA in Orlando, Fla.

"Every now and then, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity presents itself," said Spotted Eagle. "It was terribly inconvenient to drop everything in my life to run to Orlando and jump with the shuttle, but it was absolutely worth it."

He was specifically selected for this jump and was traveling when he got the invitation to join the tangent group.

Spotted Eagle, who has lived in Stockton for about 12 years, works as a tandem skydiving videographer, and has made more than 831 jumps in his lifetime, most of which are done at the Skydive Utah in Erda.

"Never before in history has a skydiver worn a wingsuit in front of a shuttle launch," said Spotted Eagle. "The four of us definitely made history that day."

The group glided through the blue skies in a wing suit, or a gliding jumpsuit that has fabric webbing between the legs of the jumper and from each sleeve to the torso. The relatively new design allows the individual jumping to cruise the high altitudes, lengthening the actual time they are in the sky.

The flight, which lasted about two minutes before the parachutes were opened, was captured with still shot photographs, while the shuttle, being chased by its own contrail, or cloud trail, visibly graced the backdrop of the jumpers.

"Flying over the ocean presents a number of nearly insurmountable obstacles. The dropzone is just outside the 30-mile radius of the shuttle launch pad," Spotted Eagle said. "As it was, we flew into the restricted area and the pilot was warned by ATC [air traffic control] and NASA that we were inside their zone. That was a little worrisome at first, but our pilot was very skilled, and able to keep us right on the edge of the area."

Spotted Eagle said he was glad for the experience and unique perspective the skydive offered.

"We really marked one historic moment as we took that exciting flight," he said. "I would do it again if the opportunity presented itself."