Tag archives for Records
Woman Climbs Without Extra Oxygen
Posted by On August 23, a 40-year-old woman named Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner from Austria climbed to the top of K2 (Earth’s second-tallest mountain). With this ascent, Kaltenbrunner has become the first woman to climb all of the world’s 8,000-meter (26,246-foot) peaks without using extra oxygen. That’s 14 climbs in all!
Read more about Kaltenbrunner’s expedition on National Geographic’s News Watch blog.
Photograph by Ralf Dujmovits, National Geographic
Last year, a Dutch court ruled that Laura Dekker was too young to sail around the world by herself. Laura is now 14, and she is on her way to Portugal on her yacht, Guppy. In September, Laura will begin her official attempt to break the record for the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe sailing solo. The current record holder, Jessica Watson, broke the record in May at the age of 16.
Would you want to sail around the world alone?
Read more about Laura in the Associated Press article.
See a video of Laura on the the BBC.
Photograph by Bas Czerwinski, AP
Jordan Romero, a 13-year-old from Big Bear Lake, California, has become the youngest person to scale Mount Everest, the world’s tallest peak. He reached the 29,035-foot (8,850-meter) summit with a team that included his father, his father’s girlfriend, and three Sherpa guides.
Jordan said he hoped his achievement would encourage young people worldwide to identify their own big dreams and pursue them.
“I’m doing this to inspire other kids, hopefully across the world, to get outdoors and to set goals in life. I’m doing this to set an example for them,” he said.
After reaching the peak, the eighth-grader called his mom and exclaimed, “It’s your son calling from the top of the world!”
Read more about Jordan’s journeys.
Learn about Sherpas.
Look at map of Mount Everest.
Photo courtesy Romero Family
The world’s tallest building officially opened on Monday, January 4. The Burj Dubai, the tallest skyscraper in the world, is 200 stories tall and contains housing, offices, and a hotel. Standing at a height of over 800 meters (2,625 feet), the Burj Dubai stands about half a mile high. It will also be home to the highest swimming pool in the world!
Before the Burj Dubai, the tallest skyscraper in the world was the Taipei 101 in Taiwan. Taipei 101 is a little higher than 500 meters (about 1,640 feet).
Get more facts on the Burj Dubai from Reuters.
Quiz Your Noodle on inventions that changed the world on National Geographic Kids.
Photograph by Bart Muhl/AP
Laura Dekker is a girl with a dream–to be the youngest person to circumnavigate (sail around) the world alone in her yacht, Guppy. Laura isn’t new to sailing. She was born on a boat in New Zealand, and was sailing solo on lakes when she was six years old. She sailed across the English Channel to England and back at her father’s insistence that she prove herself before tackling the open ocean. Laura is 13 years old.
A Dutch court has ruled that Laura is too young to make the trip alone, and has placed her under state supervision for two months to make sure she stays on dry land.
Do you think 13 is too young to sail solo around the world? How old do you think someone should be before sailing such a huge distance alone?
Read more about Laura Dekker on the BBC.
Read about a man’s attempt to circumnavigate the world on his own power on National Geographic Kids.
Photograph courtesy Anne McCormack
National Geographic Kids set the world record today for the largest collection of denim clothing to recycle. The final count, verified by Stuart Claxton for Guinness World Records, is an astounding 33,088 pieces of denim clothing! Erek H., a NG Kids reader from Ohio, collected 1,684 pairs of jeans for the project. He had the honor of putting the final pair of jeans into the display…jeans that once belonged to Ben Stiller! The actor donated one of his pairs of jeans at the beginning of the jeans drive.
Visit the Green Scene blog to find out more about the record attempt.
Check out videos of other Guinness World Records.
Read about the record NG Kids set for the longest chain of shoes.
Photograph by Jake Norton
Four mountain climbers who have climbed Mount Everest are now taking a shot at reaching the summit again. Peter Whittaker, Ed Viesturs, Dave Hahn, and Melissa Arnot began their expedition to the top of the world’s tallest mountain on March 30. Some of the climbers are going for records on their way to the summit! Dave Hahn is going for his incredible 11th Everest ascent, and Melissa Arnot is attempting to be the first American woman to reach the summit without extra oxygen.
Read more about the expedition and check out daily dispatches on National Geographic Adventure.
Quiz Your Noodle and find out how much you REALLY know about Mount Everest.
You have to break a lot of eggs to whip up the world’s largest pancake stack–about 100 eggs, in fact! In February, two chefs in Scotland created a 29.5-inch (75 cm) flapjack tower that just might beat the current record of 29.1 inches (74 cm). The grocery list of ingredients also included an incredible 11 pounds (5 kilograms) of flour and 6.6 pounds (3 kilograms) of butter.
See more crazy competition photos on National Geographic News.
Help National Geographic Kids set a world record!
Watch videos of more Guinness World Record attempts.
Photograph courtesy Danny Lawson/AP
