The True History Behind Ron Howard's 'Thirteen Lives'

A new film dramatizes the harrowing attempts to save a group of boys trapped in a cave in Thailand in 2018 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

The Allure of Self-Taught Art

SAAM’s new show “We Are Made of Stories” examines the 20th-century rise and creative vision of artists who make art without formal training | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

A Musical About Frida Kahlo Is Coming to Broadway

The production, expected to open in 2024, is a celebration of the painter's resilience and passion | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

The Sea Is Slowly Consuming Quebec's Magdalen Islands

Those living in the doomed paradise face a stark choice: resist, adapt, or give in to the ravenous ocean | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Rio Grande Runs Dry in Albuquerque

The river is an important water source for central New Mexico, and it's also home to the endangered silvery minnow | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Can Cultural Treasures in Occupied Ukraine Be Saved?

The podcast 'Sidedoor' goes behind-the-scenes with the Smithsonian Culture Rescue Initiative and its heroic efforts to safeguard the nation’s heritage | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Russia Says It Will Leave the International Space Station After 2024

The United States and Russia jointly built and now operate the station | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Unraveling the Secrets of Don McLean's 'American Pie'

A new documentary explores the meaning of the catchy, enigmatic tune | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Could Water Cremation Become the New American Way of Death?

A sustainable option for what to do with our remains is trickling into popular consciousness | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Some People Can Tickle Themselves

Just as schizophrenics may hear voices in their heads, they may also experience self-induced phantom tickling | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Study Refutes Controversial Research That Divided the T. Rex Into Three Species

Scientists published a rebuttal article that found “insufficient evidence for multiple species of Tyrannosaurus” | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Why Did Europeans Evolve Into Becoming Lactose Tolerant?

Famine and disease from millennia ago likely spurred the rapid evolution of the trait on the continent | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

A Fast-Moving Wildfire is Spreading Near Yosemite National Park

The Oak Fire has forced thousands of Mariposa County residents to evacuate | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

The James Webb Space Telescope Might Have Spotted the Most Distant Galaxy Ever Seen

Scientists think the light detected by the telescope is from just 300 million years after the Big Bang | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

England's Oldest Surviving Shipwreck Is a 13th-Century Merchant Vessel

Carrying a cargo of locally sourced limestone, the so-called Mortar Wreck likely sank off the Dorset coast during the reign of Henry III | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

WHO Declares Monkeypox a Global Health Emergency

Five deaths have been attributed to the disease in the Central African Republic and Nigeria in 2022 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

How the Nemesis Air Racers Redefined Speed

For Jon and Patricia Sharp, crafting and flying the sleek airplanes was as much about sport as it was about ingenuity | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

'Alleged' Fabergé Egg Found Aboard a Seized Russian Oligarch's Yacht

The rare egg may not be authentic—but if it is, it could be worth millions | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Why Hitler and Stalin Hated Esperanto, the 135-Year-Old Language of Peace

Jewish doctor L.L. Zamenhof created Esperanto as a way for diverse groups to easily communicate | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Four Critically Endangered Condors Released in Northern California

The Yurok Tribe has released one juvenile female and three males, the first birds to live in the region in more than 100 years | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Will Electronic Bag Tags Make Air Travel Less Chaotic?

Amid delays, cancellations and long lines, Alaska Airlines is rolling out a new technology that could make checking a bag easier and faster | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

After Selling for $43 Million, Rare Copy of the Constitution Goes on Display

The new exhibition explores diverse interpretations of the document's founding values | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Stories From the Black Maternal Mortality Crisis

The new documentary 'Aftershock' follows two women who died from pregnancy-related complications | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

How Indigenous Sea Gardens Produced Massive Amounts of Food for Millennia

Communities created bountiful food without putting populations at risk of collapse | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

These Objects Tell the Story of Buzz Aldrin's Career

The astronaut is auctioning off his moon-landing jacket and other space gear | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Drug Overdose Deaths in the U.S. Are Increasing More in Black and Indigenous Populations

The CDC reports a 44 percent increase in drug overdose fatalities in Black people and a 39 percent increase in Native Americans from 2019 to 2020 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

The Barrier-Breaking Rowers of America's First All-Black Crew Team

At the height of the civil rights movement, Howard University's oarsmen held their own against rivals from established, largely white programs | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Migratory Monarch Butterflies Are Listed as an Endangered Species

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the iconic North American butterfly is getting closer to extinction | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

First Polio Case in U.S. Since 2013 Detected in New York State

Experts warn that the virus poses a health risk to unvaccinated communities | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

First Images of Mysterious 'Milky Seas' Captured

Bioluminescent bacteria are likely responsible for this rare luminous event covering thousands of square miles of ocean | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

The inventor of ibuprofen tested the drug on his own hangover

Stewart Adams' headache subsided—and his over-the-counter pain reliever became one of the world's most popular medications | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

How Medieval Money Shaped Ukraine’s Modern Identity

The country's distinct history is revealed in banknotes, coins and other monetary objects, says the Smithsonian’s curator of numismatics | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

This New San Francisco Park Sits Above Six Lanes of Traffic

The 14-acre Presidio Tunnel Tops is the latest infrastructure reuse project to transform a city | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

American Tourist Rescued After Falling Into Mount Vesuvius Crater

Using a long rope, volcano guides pulled the man to safety | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

After Fish Developed Limbs, Some Might Have Returned to Swimming

Scientists think a recently discovered fossil is evidence that evolution is more like a branching tree than a ladder | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Cheetahs Will Soon Be Reintroduced to India

The felines were declared extinct in the country in 1952 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

As Arctic Temperatures Rise, Polar Bears Are Eating More Garbage

A new paper warns that a growing reliance on trash is leading to more human-bear conflict | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Why Archaeologists Think They've Found the Lost City of Natounia

New research draws on rock reliefs and ancient coins to link the Rabana-Merquly fortress in Iraq to a vassal state of the Parthian Empire | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Giant Snails Take Over Florida's Gulf Coast Again

The state has found more than 1,400 of the massive snails since June | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

How Korean Pop Culture Took the World by Storm

A new exhibition will explore the rise of South Korean fashion, movies, music and more | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Archaeologists Uncover Rare Human Skeleton at Waterloo

The bones were discovered in a ditch near a former field hospital | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

The Civil War's First Civilian Casualty Was an Elderly Widow From Virginia

Union gunfire killed 85-year-old Judith Carter Henry on July 21, 1861—the day of the First Battle of Bull Run | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Penguins Might Not Be Ready to Adapt to Modern Climate Change

A new study looking at genomes and the fossil record shows that penguins evolve slower than other birds | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Malaysia Authorities Seize Elephant Tusks, Rhino Horns Worth $18 Million

Criminals had hidden the contraband animal parts in a container full of sawn timber | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

How Puerto Rico Became One of the Caribbean's Top Agritourism Destinations

Across the island, certified sites invite both travelers and local residents to experience farming practices and traditions firsthand | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Scientists Just Sent Two Batches of Stem Cells Into Space

Experiments on the International Space Station will help show how human cells grow and age in zero gravity | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

Jim Thorpe's 1912 Olympic Gold Medals Are Finally Reinstated

Officials removed the Native American athlete's victories from Olympic records in 1913 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago

After More Than 150 Years, Sculptor Edmonia Lewis Finally Gets Her Degree

A historian is fighting to honor the legacy of the 19th-century artist | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 years ago