About Miles @milesobrien
Miles O’Brien is veteran, independent journalist who focuses on science, technology and aerospace.
He is the science correspondent for the PBS NewsHour, a producer and director for the PBS science documentary series NOVA, and a correspondent for the PBS documentary series FRONTLINE and the National Science Foundation Science Nation series.
For nearly seventeen of his thirty-two years in the news business, he worked for CNN as the science, environment and aerospace space correspondent and the anchor of various programs, including American Morning.
While at CNN, he secured a deal with NASA to become the first journalist to fly on the space shuttle. The project ended with the loss of Columbia and her crew in 2003 – a story he told to the world in a critically acclaimed sixteen-hour marathon of live coverage.
Prior to joining CNN, he worked as a reporter at television stations in Boston, Tampa, Albany, NY and St. Joseph, MO. He began his television career as a desk assistant at WRC-TV in Washington, DC.
O’Brien is an accomplished aviator and aircraft owner who often pilots his airplane to assignments, and is frequently called upon to explain the world of aviation to a mass audience.
He has won numerous awards over the years, including a half-dozen Emmys, and a Peabody and DuPont for his coverage of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath.
Born in Detroit and raised in Grosse Pointe Farms, MI, he is based in Washington, DC. He has a son at the US Naval Academy and a daughter at Davidson College in North Carolina. He was a history major at Georgetown University.
Miles’s Recent Stories
Health Feb 23
Why the vaccine rollout in the U.S. has been slower than expectedSo far, 65 million Americans have received at least one shot of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines. As a country, the U.S. has recently picked up the pace of vaccinations, but there are concerns over supply and demand, which…
Science Feb 18
NASA rover lands on Mars, resuming search for remnants of lifeThe U.S. is back on the Red Planet after a nearly 300-million-mile journey. NASA celebrated late Thursday afternoon when it landed its latest rover on Mars. The rover is designed to explore new areas of the planet and look for…
Science Feb 17
5 things you should know about the Mars 2020 missionPerseverance is expected to land on the Red Planet Thursday after a seven-month journey. Science correspondent Miles O'Brien previews the nailbiter landing, what scientists are hoping to learn, and the innovations on board.
Science Feb 17
NASA sets ambitious goals for latest mission to MarsIf all goes according to plan, the United States will land its most advanced rover ever on Mars on Thursday, nearly 300-million miles from where it lifted off last year. It is a daunting task, one that will set up…
Politics Nov 18
Behind the ballots in Georgia’s recount — the largest in U.S. historyAs President Trump presses forward with legal challenges to the election and reiterates false claims that he won, Georgia has been in the spotlight due to its massive statewide recount. The deadline for completing the recount is approaching -- and…
Science Nov 16
The risks and rewards of Operation Warp Speed’s approach to vaccinesThe race to develop vaccine candidates to prevent COVID-19 represents an unprecedented national and global effort. President Trump and some public health experts say encouraging early results from Pfizer and Moderna suggest the approach is working. But there are also…
Politics Nov 06
In an unprecedented election, two key swing states show how we got hereElection Day has come and gone, but there are still many unanswered questions, along with uncertainty about how we got here and where we go next. In this episode, we talk to our reporters who have been covering this election…
Nation Oct 26
Will Georgia’s new voting machines solve election problems — or make them worse?Protecting the American voting process from outside interference is a top priority this election season. But public and political opinion are divided over the best voting systems to prevent tampering. Miles O’Brien takes a look at the latest technology being…
Nation Oct 14
What election officials think about paper ballots and voting machinesDuring this election, early and absentee voting are expected to reach record levels, with mail-in ballots drawing significant attention as a result. President Trump has repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that voting by mail is not safe or reliable -- but…
Politics Sep 24
Trump says voting by mail isn’t reliable. What does the evidence show?President Trump’s refusal to commit to a peaceful transition of power is tied to his criticism and false statements about voting by mail, which is expected to reach record levels in this election. Trump insists it can't be trusted --…