Explorers from Around the World to Mark 125th Anniversary of National Geographic

WASHINGTON (Jan. 10, 2013)—Have you ever wanted to ask a question of the man who discovered the remains of the Titanic, the primatologist who pioneered field research on wild chimpanzees or the explorer who made the first solo dive to the ocean’s deepest point?

Robert Ballard, Jane Goodall and James Cameron — along with National Geographic explorers in the field on every continent — will take questions from the public in a live Google+ Hangout from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. (ET) this Sunday, Jan. 13, marking the 125^th anniversary of the National Geographic Society. People around the world are invited to submit questions for the explorers or to videotape themselves asking a question for use in the Hangout.

Exploration is the National Geographic Society’s passion and the focus of the January issue of National Geographic magazine. Sunday’s Hangout will be a conversation about the new age of exploration. The event will be the first in a series of monthly National Geographic-Google+ Hangouts with explorers leading innovative field research across the globe.

Sunday’s event will use Google’s innovative multi-participant, live video-chat platform. The public can submit questions by:

• Uploading a video question to YouTube with #NatGeo125
• Posting a question on Google+ or Twitter with #NatGeo125
• Commenting on the National Geographic News Watch blog
• Leaving a comment on this Facebook post

The Hangout can be viewed on the National Geographic Google+ page or on YouTube.com/NatGeo.

Since its first expedition in 1890 to map the Mount St. Elias region in Alaska, National Geographic has led the way in exploration of the planet — and in harnessing new technologies to bring the stories of exploration to its readers and viewers.

Robert Ballard is a National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence who is most famous for his discovery of the RMS Titanic in 1985. Ballard has pioneered the use of robotics to explore ancient shipwrecks and natural wonders of the sea.

Jane Goodall received her first grant from the National Geographic Society in 1961 and went on to lead a 50-year field study of wild chimpanzees. Her research revealed that, like humans, chimps make tools to procure food and they engage in violence against each other.

James Cameron is a filmmaker and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence. His 35,756-foot solo dive, known as DEEPSEA CHALLENGE, to the ocean’s deepest point in the South Pacific’s Mariana Trench last year set a record and gathered scientific information.

Other explorers participating in Sunday’s Hangout are:

• Kyler Abernathy, National Geographic Crittercam team member, participating from Antarctica
• Kenny Broad, environmental anthropologist, Florida
• Albert Lin, research scientist/engineer, California
• Krithi Karanth, conservation biologist, India
• Paula Kahumbu, wildlife conservationist, Kenya
• Sebastian Cruz, biologist, Ecuador
• Boyd Matson, National Geographic radio host, serving as Hangout moderator from National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C.

A “new age of exploration” will be celebrated Society-wide throughout 2013, including the National Geographic Channels, website, books, magazines, video and live events. The yearlong initiative has been made possible through a 125^th anniversary partnership with Rolex. Leading brand of the Swiss watch industry, Rolex has accompanied many of humanity’s greatest feats as men and women such as James Cameron ­have broken long-standing records, defied the elements and explored the globe’s most forbidding frontiers.