Vanessa O’Brien is the first person to complete the “Explorers’ Extreme Trifecta” (female), reaching extremes on land, sea, and air, including Everest, Challenger Deep, and Blue Origin’s NS-22, in 3,729 days.

On August 4, 2022, Vanessa O’Brien passed the Kármán Line into sub-orbital space to reach an apogee of 351,232 feet (107km).

Vanessa O’Brien wears a portable MRI by iMedisync to measure her brain activity after her spaceflight.

Vanessa O’Brien presents a series of UN Women Flags to Executive Director, UN Women, Sima Sami Bahous.

Vanessa O’Brien, record-setting American-British explorer, takes you on a transformative journey to the top of the world’s highest mountains in this riveting and uplifting memoir, To The Greatest Heights.

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Vanessa O’Brien, FRGS

Media

Vanessa describes the EEG headset from iMediSync (아이메디신) she used to measure brain and HRV before and after her spaceflight on NS-22. iMediSync takes one step further by identifying early stage degenerative diseases (Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, for example), as their headset also administers transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) – low levels of red or near-infrared (NIR) light to stimulate neural tissues.

Just back from Guam, Vanessa becomes the First Woman to Reach Earth’s Highest and Lowest Points. She tells SkyNews about it on June 19, 2020.

More Media Appearances

Featured Videos:

To The Greatest Heights Book Trailer

To The Greatest Heights Book Trailer featuring the song Fearless by Jazmin Grace Grimaldi, produced by Nils Krebs at NK Films, München. Learn more about To The Greatest Heights on the official book website.

Vanessa O’Brien – First British and American Woman to Conquer K2

Vanessa O’Brien, the first British and American woman to conquer K2, tells Voice of America her story. Video credit to The Voice of America.

Why This Road? Sponsored by Vimeo & Charles Schwab

After years of working in finance, Vanessa began to question life, and came to the realization that it needed to change. From consumer accounts for many large banking firms, Vanessa began her new journey as a climber—first novice and now record holder. This film illustrates the pivotal moments that led to Vanessa’s evolution and ability to grasp a different kind of tomorrow.

Breathe: An Explorers Grand Slam Journey

Journey with me to the 7 Summits in 7 minutes. Join me as I become the fastest woman to complete the Explorers Grand Slam and ski the last degree to the North and South poles, in 11 months.

Photos Across the Globe

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About Vanessa O’Brien

Vanessa O’Brien is a British mountaineer and an American mountaineer (as a result of her dual nationality), explorer, aquanaut, astronaut, author, and public speaker.

Vanessa has an incredible six Guinness World Records: First x 2, Fastest, Deepest, Farthest and Oldest. Vanessa is the first woman to reach extremes on land, sea, and air (the Explorers' Extreme Trifecta) following her mission on Blue Origin's NS-22 to 107km. Vanessa was the first woman to reach earth’s highest (Mt. Everest 8,848m) and lowest points (Challenger Deep 10,925m), the fastest woman to climb the seven summits in 295 days, and the first person to reach nearest to and farthest from the earth's core (Challenger Deep and the summit of Chimborazo.) Vanessa is the first woman to complete the Four Poles Challenge, going the farthest north * south * east * west from the top of Everest to the bottom of Challenger Deep to skiing the last degree to the geographic north and south poles. She holds the record for the oldest woman to summit K2, the second tallest peak, at 52 years old.

Vanessa became the first American or British woman to successfully summit K2, receiving Explorer of the Year by the Scientific Exploration Society (SES) in 2018. She is a Fellow of the Royal Geographic Society and an Honorary Advisory Board member of the SES.

Vanessa summitted the highest peak on every continent, receiving a Guinness World Record for the fastest time a woman first achieved this goal (295 days.) Vanessa has skied the last 111 km to the north and south poles completing the Explorers Grand Slam in 11 months, the first woman to do so in under a year, and the 8th woman in the world. Vanessa ran the Boston Marathon in 2017, helping to raise money for the American Red Cross, has been shot testing bulletproof vests with a .38 long revolver at point blank range, and rode 200 mph with Mario Andretti at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

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