Spaceman goes missing over Leicester

The hunt is on for a tiny 10ins spaceman who is missing in action after being launched to the edge of space.

The miniature astronaut, nicknamed Mojo Man, was sent 20 miles into the stratosphere attached to a weather balloon.

He was launched as an experiment by Leicestershire engineer Shaun Whitehead with permission from the Civil Aviation Authority.

Mojo Man, who was dressed in an aluminium foil suit and a plastic helmet, completed his mission and was caught on camera at 110,000ft above the Earth.

But he became detached from the equipment when it floated back down to the ground and is believed to have fallen somewhere near Leicester.

"I've always wanted to try taking some photos on the edge of space," said Mr Whitehead. "I needed a test item for the launch and Mojo Spaceman was a bit of fun."

The little man, who was mounted on a CD of The Planets Suite by Gustav Holst, reached a height of 20 miles where the temperature is -55C.

The payload, including electronic equipment and a hi-tech mini camera, was designed to float harmlessly down on a parachute but it is thought a piece of cord separated the spaceman from the rig.

"The project worked perfectly and we captured 2.5 hours of high definition video of the flight from launch to landing," said Mr Whitehead, from Grimston, near Melton.

"The rest of the equipment eventually landed but sadly there was no sign of the astronaut.

"We've looked at the video and think he was knocked off his perch when the balloon burst and fell somewhere around Leicester.

"The plastic he is printed from, ABS, is also very tough so I have high hopes for his survival and if someone finds him I'd love them to get in touch."