Reaching the Five Deeps with Victor Vescovo

Join us for an extraordinary evening with Victor Vescovo, a modern-day explorer who has pushed the boundaries of human achievement. As the first person to descend to the deepest point in each of the world’s five oceans, Victor’s expeditions have not only expanded our understanding of the planet but also inspired a new generation of explorers and innovators. Victor will discuss the genesis of the Five Deeps Expedition, as well as the five-year effort to make it happen. He will also share his remarkable experiences as a naval intelligence officer, pilot, and adventurer in both polar regions and high-altitude mountains.

Victor’s current focus is on mapping the ocean floor. He envisions a future where satellites can chart coastal areas, while a highly efficient vessel, designed under his guidance, will unlock the secrets of the deep ocean. His long-term goal is even more ambitious: to create a submersible capable of regular visits to Challenger Deep, the deepest point on Earth. This “fourth-generation” submersible will surpass its predecessors in capability and reliability, opening up new frontiers for exploration and research. Victor’s journey is a testament to the boundless possibilities of human ingenuity and the enduring spirit of exploration.

Beyond his passion for exploration, Victor is a shrewd investor, involved in high-risk, high-reward ventures. He backs groundbreaking startups that seek to revive extinct species, mine asteroids, revolutionize shipbuilding, and develop innovative cures for previously incurable diseases. His interests are as diverse as they are audacious.

Victor Vescovo is a venture capitalist with particular interests in aerospace, defense, and life sciences.  He received his bachelor’s degree from Stanford University, a Master’s Degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Additionally, he served 20 years in the U.S. Navy Reserve as an intelligence officer, retiring in 2013 as a Commander. In 2017, Victor completed the “Explorer’s Grand Slam” which requires climbing the highest peak on all seven of the world’s continents including Mt. Everest and skiing to the North and South Poles. He piloted the first repeated dives to the ocean’s deepest point, Challenger Deep in the Pacific’s Mariana Trench — now fifteen times, and in August 2019 became the first person to visit “The Five Deeps,” the deepest point in all five of the world’s oceans. Victor has now personally explored the bottom of seventeen deep ocean trenches and has made three dives to the Titanic including the only solo dive ever made there. He and his team also discovered the deepest shipwreck in the world: the USS Samuel B. Roberts, at 22,600 feet in 2022. Between 2018-2022, his research vessel the DSSV Pressure Drop mapped over 3 million square kilometers of seafloor, close to 1% of the seafloor’s total area, and named over 60 undersea features. Victor is also a commercially rated, multi-engine jet, helicopter, and seaplane pilot, a certified submersible test pilot, and flew into space on Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket in June 2022, becoming the first person in history to climb Mount Everest, dive to the bottom of the ocean, and visit space.

This program was organized by Phoebe Piper #1244.