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Miles O'Brien

About Miles

Miles O’Brien is a veteran, independent journalist who focuses on science, technology and aerospace.

He is the science correspondent for the PBS News Hour, a producer, director, writer and correspondent for the PBS documentary programs NOVA and FRONTLINE and an aviation analyst for CNN. He owns MOBIAS Media, Inc., a production company that creates award winning documentary films primarily for PBS as well as several educational and corporate clients.

For nearly seventeen of his thirty-nine years in the news business, he was a staff correspondent and anchor with CNN, based in Atlanta and New York. He served as the science, environment and aerospace correspondent and the anchor of various programs, including American Morning.

While at CNN, O’Brien 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. He later served for ten years as a member of the NASA Advisory Council, offering strategic advice to the NASA administrator.

Prior to joining CNN, he worked as a reporter at television stations in St. Joseph, MO, Albany, NY, Tampa, FL and Boston. He began his television career as a desk assistant at WRC-TV in Washington, DC.

O’Brien is an accomplished pilot and is frequently called upon to explain the world of aviation to a mass audience.

He has won numerous awards over the years, including six Emmys, a Peabody and a DuPont.

He has produced, written and directed nine films for PBS NOVA: Mind of a Rampage Killer (2013), Manhunt Boston Bombers (2013), Megastorm Aftermath (2013), Why Planes Vanish (2014), Nuclear Meltdown Disaster (2015), Fifteen Years of Terror (2016), The Nuclear Option (2017), Inside the Megafire (2019) and The Great Electric Airplane Race (2021).

He also produced, wrote and directed FRONTLINE Coronavirus Pandemic (2020) and was a writer and correspondent for four FRONTLINES: Flying Cheap (2010), Flying Cheaper (2011), Nuclear Aftershocks (2012) and Dollars and Dentists (2012).

In February of 2014, a heavy equipment case fell on his forearm while he was on assignment. He developed Acute Compartment Syndrome, which necessitated the emergency amputation of his left arm above the elbow. Despite the loss of his arm, he has completed two marathons, several ultra-distance bike rides, a half Ironman, and has returned to flying airplanes.

Born in Detroit and raised in Grosse Pointe Farms, MI, he is based in Vero Beach, Florida. He was a history major at Georgetown University. Miles has two grown children. His son is a US Navy Lieutenant stationed in Catania, Italy and his daughter is a social worker in New York City.

Full Bio

Miles’s Recent Stories

Science Apr 19

Scientists dive into the political fray

Is the scientific community finding its political voice? As the March for Science approaches, science correspondent Miles O’Brien meets with researchers who are venturing into the political fray to keep their profession alive.

Science Apr 05

Why finding a solution to control Lyme disease isn’t simple

Ticks are by far the biggest disease vector in the U.S., and Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne illness in the northern hemisphere, causing neurological problems and even permanent cognitive and sensory impairment if not treated. Science correspondent Miles…

Science Mar 08

How scientists are tracking a massive iceberg in the making

Antarctica's Larsen Ice Shelf is disappearing section by section. A fast-growing rift, one of the largest ever seen, is now teetering on the edge of breaking away from the glacier. Science correspondent Miles O’Brien explores how scientists have tracked the…

Science Jan 25

Why psychedelic drugs are having a medical renaissance

For C.J. Hardin, an Army veteran, dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder is an everyday feat. After years of pills and therapy failed to help his disorder, Hardin knew he needed an alternative. So he turned to a surprising substitute that's…

Science Oct 26

Cracking the stealth political influence of bots

Among the millions of real people tweeting about the presidential race, there are also a lot accounts operated by fake people, or “bots.” Politicians and regular users alike use these accounts to increase their follower bases and push messages. Science…

Science Jun 14

After life in captivity, dolphins to undergo sea change

Chesapeake, a 24-year-old bottlenose dolphin at the Baltimore National Aquarium, has always lived indoors in a concrete tank. But she and the seven others in her pod are destined for a sea change. The aquarium plans to build a natural…

Science Jun 12

The real killer in the Ebola epidemic

Some disasters are more transparent than others. As we departed JFK airport on our way to Brussels and ultimately Freetown, Sierra Leone, we flew right over the Rockaways and Broad Channel, NY. Photojournalist Cameron Hickey was sitting right beside me.

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