Perpetual Planet Expeditions

Groundbreaking Explorer-led science and solutions-focused expeditions to reveal, protect, rebalance and restore our planet’s critical life-support systems.

Guided by a shared vision for protecting our planet’s vital life-support systems, the National Geographic Society and Rolex expanded their long-standing partnership in 2019 and launched Perpetual Planet Expeditions to examine and document the impact of climate and environmental change on some of the world’s most critical yet fragile mountain, rainforest and ocean systems, and to identify solutions to protect them.

Led by multidisciplinary teams of Explorers, Perpetual Planet Expeditions harnesses world-renowned scientific expertise and cutting-edge technology to advance knowledge and drive scalable solutions to conservation challenges in partnership with local communities. It leverages the power of storytelling and education to illuminate the wonder of our world and inspire global audiences to care about and protect it.

Into the Amazon

Follow a drop of water as it flows through the Amazon, from summit to sea, and hear from locals, scientists and explorers along the way.

By the Numbers

National Geographic Explorers

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Local Collaborators

Continents

World Records

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Peer-reviewed Scientific Publications

Mountains

The Perpetual Planet Mountain Expeditions conducted trailblazing scientific research expeditions to three key alpine environments — the Hindu Kush-Himalaya, the southern Andes, and western Canada — to examine the impact of climate and environmental change on these systems and to identify solutions for those communities that rely on them.

Mount Everest

Tupungato Volcano

Mount Logan

Rainforests

Centered on the Amazon River Basin — the life-blood that flows through the largest rainforest on Earth — and with a unique focus on its flood pulse, the Perpetual Planet Amazon Expedition is a multi-year series of solutions-driven science and storytelling expeditions spanning this massive freshwater ecosystem and spanning the Andes to the Atlantic.

Andean Bears

River Guardians

River Dolphins

The Ocean

Coming Soon

Latest Stories

Curuça, Pará, Brazil - 2022/07/19: View of a forest of Rhizophora mangle (aka. Red Mangrove) and Avicennia germinans (aka. Black Mangrove) in Curuça forest.

National Geographic Explorers Angelo Bernardino and Margaret Owuor are working with local communities in the Curuça region at the mouth of the Amazon to map the ecosystem services provided by the mangrove forests in this unique environment, and determine their economic value.

The National Geographic and Rolex Perpetual Planet Amazon Expedition is an extensive science and storytelling journey that spans the entire Amazon River Basin from the Andes to the Atlantic. This two-year exploration of the Amazon leverages local National Geographic Explorers, multiple science disciplines, and photojournalism to illuminate the diversity and connectivity of the people, wildlife, and ecosystems that make up this critical region, and the solutions needed to ensure its protection.

Brazil’s Mangrove Forests Represent Untapped Blue Carbon Banks, Says New Study from National Geographic Explorers

Rarely Seen Cliff Art Reveals the Majesty of the Amazon’s Aquatic Realm

NS18350287_NGSPPAMZ_Andre Dib_21092022-_Z093726_

One of Earth’s Biggest Freshwater Fish is Bouncing Back, a Rare ‘Win Win’

Latest Findings

Curuça, Pará, Brazil - 2022/07/24: The mangrove research team climbs over mangrove roots to avoid getting stuck in the mud.

National Geographic Explorers Angelo Bernardino and Margaret Owuor are working with local communities in the Curuça region at the mouth of the Amazon to map the ecosystem services provided by the mangrove forests in this unique environment, and determine their economic value.

The National Geographic and Rolex Perpetual Planet Amazon Expedition is an extensive science and storytelling journey that spans the entire Amazon River Basin from the Andes to the Atlantic. This two-year exploration of the Amazon leverages local National Geographic Explorers, multiple science disciplines, and photojournalism to illuminate the diversity and connectivity of the people, wildlife, and ecosystems that make up this critical region, and the solutions needed to ensure its protection.

The Inclusion of Amazon Mangroves in Brazil’s REDD+ Program

Khumbu Valley, Nepal - 2022/05/09: Members of the 2022 Mt. Everest expedition team finalize the construction of the weather station at Bishop Rock.

In May 2022, as part of the Perpetual Planet Expeditions partnership between National Geographic Society and Rolex, National Geographic Explorers along with a team of elite climbing Sherpa installed a new weather station just below the summit of Mount Everest at 8,810m/28,904ft. This work completes the most ambitious scientific undertaking on Mount Everest ever conducted that first installed a network of five weather stations, including the two highest in the world at the time in 2019.

Himalayan High: Weather Stations on Mount Everest Reach New Heights

Curuça, Pará, Brazil - 2022/07/22: Laiz Rodriguez de Araujo and her neighbor, Yselena Rodriguez de Araujo (featured) head out of the mangrove forest with their caught crabs in hand.

National Geographic Explorers Angelo Bernardino and Margaret Owuor are working with local communities in the Curuça region at the mouth of the Amazon to map the ecosystem services provided by the mangrove forests in this unique environment, and determine their economic value.

The National Geographic and Rolex Perpetual Planet Amazon Expedition is an extensive science and storytelling journey that spans the entire Amazon River Basin from the Andes to the Atlantic. This two-year exploration of the Amazon leverages local National Geographic Explorers, multiple science disciplines, and photojournalism to illuminate the diversity and connectivity of the people, wildlife, and ecosystems that make up this critical region, and the solutions needed to ensure its protection.

Flow of Mangrove Ecosystem Services to Coastal Communities in the Brazilian Amazon

Photo credits (from top of page): Pablo Albarenga, Arbindra Khadka, Leo Hoorn, Dirk Collins, Armando Vega, Leo Hoorn, Pablo Albarenga (2), Elias Condori Cuti, André Dib, Fernando Trujillo, Devin Swanson, Nik Varley