Climate Change May Unearth Cold War-Era Nuclear Waste Stored by the U.S. in Other Countries

A new report finds that melting ice and rising sea levels could disturb radioactive contamination left over from American nuclear tests after World War II | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Auction House Cancels Sale of Looted Ethiopian Shield

Heritage officials have called for the return of the artifact, which British forces seized in 1868 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

World War II 'Rumor Clinics' Helped America Battle Wild Gossip

Newspapers and magazines across the United States published weekly columns debunking lurid claims that were detrimental to the war effort | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Rare 'Jungle Book' Watercolor Goes on Display at Rudyard Kipling's Home in England

"The Return of the Buffalo Herd" is one of only four surviving illustrations from the book | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Scientists Unravel the Mysteries of Earth's Towering Star Dunes—Massive, Moving Mountains of Sand

Using new technologies, researchers revealed an enormous star dune in Morocco formed more quickly than thought, and it's on the move | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

A Remarkable Fresco Depicting a Scene From Greek Mythology Has Been Found in Pompeii

The vibrant painting portrays siblings Phrixus and Helle as they flee from their stepmother | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Jupiter's Moon Europa May Have Less Oxygen Than Previously Thought

The new findings could have implications for whether Europa's vast ocean contains the conditions necessary to support life | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

This Is When Washington, D.C.'s Cherry Trees Are Predicted to Bloom This Year

"Peak bloom," which typically falls in late March or early April, refers to the day when at least 70 percent of the trees have blossomed | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

The World's First Cryonics Museum Finds a Perfect Home in Estes Park, Colorado

The town’s historic hotel magnifies its mastery of the macabre with a chilling new attraction | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

2024 Spring Travel South Louisiana

Home to a confluence of cultures, iconic jambalayas, and a vibrant jazz legacy, let the Bayou State feed your soul and inspire you. | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Ancient Iberians Ingested Red Dust Loaded With Mind-Altering Mercury

Bones in Spain suggest a mercury-rich mineral used for art and hallucinogenic trips poisoned a community 5,000 years ago | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

2024 Spring Travel South Mississippi

Whether you’re chasing waterfalls in the Appalachian foothills, exploring Black history, or tucking in to comforting culinary classics, the Magnolia State is an invitation to all those who love to wander. | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Archaeologists May Have Found Traces of a Viking Marketplace in Norway

Ground-penetrating radar found evidence of a trading hub buried near the island of Klosterøy's historic monastery | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

2024 Spring Travel South Kentucky

The Bluegrass State has something for everyone. Sample bourbon, embark on subterranean adventures, or visit equine legends. You can even scuba dive. | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Why Do Poison Dart Frogs 'Tap Dance' With Their Toes? Research Sheds Light on Feeding Time Footwork

Scientists observed frogs tapping their toes up to 500 times per minute when prey was present, suggesting the behavior is related to predation | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

This Is What Ancient Roman Wine Tasted Like

New research shows that clay vessels known as dolia were essential to the drink's distinctive taste, flavor and texture | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

These Photos Are the First to Show Humpback Whales Mating—and Both Are Males

Photographers spotted the interaction in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Maui in 2022 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

How Wasabi Can Help Preserve Ancient Papyrus

Researchers say the green horseradish-like paste can fight fungal infections without damaging fragile pigments | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Single Orca Spotted Killing a Great White Shark for the First Time Ever

In less than two minutes, the marine mammal attacked a juvenile white shark and ripped out its liver in an encounter off the coast of South Africa last year | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

2024 Spring Travel South Alabama

Home to dazzling beaches, Southern culinary classics, and the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement, this crossroads of American culture is calling all visitors. | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Algerian Officials Inaugurate the Largest Mosque in Africa

Spanning nearly 70 acres, the $898 million project faced years of delays amid political controversy | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Deadly Snake Venom Is No Match for This New Synthetic Antibody

Scientists have created a treatment that targets a toxin produced by cobras, mambas and kraits, laying the foundation for a future universal antivenom against snake bites, according to new research | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

The Largest Wildfire in Texas History Is Raging. Here's What You Need to Know

More than one million square acres of land have been engulfed in the Smokehouse Creek Fire, placing it among the largest blazes to ever strike the U.S. | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

A Towering Statue of Atlas Emerges From the Ruins of Sicily's Ancient Temple of Zeus

In the fifth century B.C.E., 38 looming sculptures of the Titan stood guard at the structure | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

A Leak on the International Space Station Is Growing, But It Poses No Threat to Crews, NASA Says

The leak, which is at the end of a Russian service module, will not affect the upcoming launch of Crew-8 to the station | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Why Did Colonists Trash This Piece of Armor After Settling in Maryland 300 Years Ago?

The metal plate was unearthed in the cellar of a storehouse dating to the mid-1600s | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

How a Century of Black Westerns Shaped Movie History

Mario Van Peebles' "Outlaw Posse" is the latest attempt to correct the erasure of people of color from the classic cinema genre | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

How a Microbe From Yellowstone's Hot Springs Could Help Feed the World

A Chicago startup has turned a fungus found by NASA into a protein-packed food | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

These Festive Photos Capture How the World Celebrates Carnival, From Rome to Rio de Janeiro

See shots of “the world’s biggest party” from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

Boiling Tap Water Could Help Remove 80 Percent of Its Microplastics, Study Suggests

Minerals in some tap water can capture tiny plastic particles when the water is boiled, making them easier to filter away, according to a new study | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

How Ancient Texts Can Shed Light on Auroras

Documenting episodes of the phenomenon thousands of years ago may help us predict damaging solar storms in the future | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 8 months ago

10,000 People Were Evacuated So Experts Could Safely Detonate an Unexploded World War II-Era Bomb

Residents found the German explosive in a backyard garden in Plymouth, England | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

Odysseus Moon Lander Is Powering Down After 'Very Successful' Mission

The history-making spacecraft landed on its side, but it spent nearly a week sending data and images back from the moon—and engineers may try to make contact again after the lunar night is over | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

The Decimal Point Is 150 Years Older Than Previously Thought, Medieval Manuscript Reveals

A Venetian merchant used the mathematical symbol while calculating the positions of planets between 1441 and 1450 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

Don Henley of the Eagles Testifies That 'Very Personal' Handwritten Lyrics Were Stolen

The musician learned about the alleged theft when the drafts started appearing at auctions in 2012 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

A Serpentine 'Explosion' 125 Million Years Ago Primed Snakes for Rapid, Diverse Evolution

Researchers say an evolutionary "singularity" led to several small, quick changes in snake species, from legless bodies and flexible skulls to chemical-sensing abilities | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

7,000 Humpback Whales May Have Starved to Death During the 'Blob' Heatwave

The unprecedented marine heat between 2013 and 2016 in the North Pacific likely drove the whales' 20 percent decline, a trend revealed by citizen science observations | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

What Centuries-Old Shark Teeth Reveal About Brazil's Ocean

Researchers examined the remnants of a 13th-century fishing site to get a picture of how the marine ecosystem has changed | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

How the Memory of a Song Reunited Two Women Separated by the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade

In 1990, scholars found a Sierra Leonean woman who remembered a nearly identical version of a tune passed down by a Georgia woman’s enslaved ancestors | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

Star Wars Fans Can Soon Bid on C-3PO's Head

Actor Anthony Daniels wore the golden helmet while playing the iconic droid in 'Return of the Jedi' | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

The World's Smallest Vertebrate Is a Tiny Brazilian Frog, Study Finds

Adult male Brazilian flea toads are just over 7 millimeters long on average, and females measure about 8.15 millimeters | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

Archaeologists Discover Burnt Porridge Inside a 5,000-Year-Old Clay Pot

The leftovers shed new light on the dietary habits of residents of a village in Germany | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

Watch This Year's 'Dance Your PhD' Contest Winner, a Musical Celebration of Kangaroo Behavior

“Kangaroo Time” took home the competition’s overall prize, while interpretive dances on early life adversity, circadian rhythms and streambank erosion were also honored | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

36 Famous Authors Co-Wrote a Pandemic Novel. Can You Guess Who Drafted Each Section?

Margaret Atwood, R.L. Stine and John Grisham are among the writers who collaborated on "Fourteen Days," which follows a group of New Yorkers who gather on a Manhattan rooftop to swap stories beginning in March 2020 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

Via Ferratas Are Finally Catching On in the United States

With origins in Europe, the assisted climbing routes are springing up at luxury resorts and on private land this side of the Atlantic | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

Asteroid Hit by NASA Spacecraft Was Reshaped by the Collision, Study Finds

Instead of forming a crater, the agency's intentional DART crash redistributed massive amounts of the asteroid and shot large quantities of rock into space | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

Archaeologists Unearth 'Incredibly Rare' Roman-Era Clay Figurine of the God Mercury

The excavations led to the discovery of a previously unknown ancient Roman settlement in England | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago

This Tiny Fish Can Make Sounds That Rival an Airplane or an Elephant—Now, Scientists Know How

Transparent and just half an inch long, male Danionella cerebrum can make noises of more than 140 decibels | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 9 months ago