How Century-Old Paintings Reveal the Indigenous Roots and Natural History of New England Landscapes

Seven guest collaborators bring new eyes to a Smithsonian museum founder’s collection of American art | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

The Odd Arctic Military Projects Spawned by the Cold War

Many offbeat research efforts were doomed to fail, from atomic subways to a city under the ice. | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

This Defeated Presidential Candidate, Once the 'Best-Known Man in America,' Died in a Sanatorium Less Than a Month After Losing the Election

Newspaper editor Horace Greeley unsuccessfully ran against incumbent Ulysses S. Grant in November 1872. Twenty-four days later, he died of unknown causes at a private mental health facility | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Scientists Find Microplastics in Human Brain Tissue Above the Nose

A new study identified the tiny pollutants in the olfactory bulbs of eight cadavers, suggesting microplastics can travel through the nose to the brain | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Archaeologists Say They've Solved the Mystery of a Lead Coffin Discovered Beneath Notre-Dame

New research suggests the sarcophagus' occupant, previously known only as "the horseman," is Joachim du Bellay, a French Renaissance poet who died in 1560 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

The Hotel Chelsea's Iconic Neon Sign Will Be Divided Into Pieces and Sold One Letter at a Time

The vertical sign stretched across three stories of the Manhattan hotel, which once welcomed the likes of Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, Andy Warhol and Janis Joplin | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Construction Project Unearths Millions of Fossils Beneath a Los Angeles High School

The discoveries include sharks, shorebirds, mammals and saber-toothed salmon, with the oldest remains dating to almost nine million years ago | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Desi Arnaz Is Getting a Much-Deserved Historical Marker in Miami Beach

The Cuban-American actor and producer has stars on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame, but this new honor pays tribute to his start as a musician in South Florida | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Georgia O'Keeffe's Breathtaking New York City Paintings Are Finally Getting the Attention They Deserve

The artist's cityscapes, once dismissed as too masculine, would later influence the floral artworks that became central to her iconic style | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Georgia O'Keeffe's Breathtaking New York City Paintings Are Finally Get the Attention They Deserve

The artist's cityscapes, once dismissed as too masculine, would later influence the floral artworks that became central to her iconic style | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

'Pirate Seabirds' Could Become a Pathway for Deadly Avian Flu to Spread to Australia, Study Finds

Kleptoparasitism, in which a bird harasses another to steal its food, might introduce avian flu to the continent, currently the only one without the severe H5N1 strain | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Anus-Breathing Animals and Pigeon-Guided Missiles: Ig Nobel Prizes Reward Unusual but Valuable Science

The annual award ceremony featured costumes, songs and paper airplanes as scientists recognized comedic research across ten disciplines | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

To Strike Fear Into Napoleon's Occupying Army, These Retreating Soldiers Burned Down Their Own City

When the blaze in Moscow subsided on September 18, 1812, the French—who had traveled hundreds of miles into Russia—were left without vital resources as a brutal winter approached | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

These Ancient Egyptian Barracks Paint a Vivid Picture of Military Life During the Reign of Ramses II

Archaeologists unearthed a series of mudbrick rooms filled with religious tributes, soldiers' personal effects, engraved weaponry and animal bones | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Deaths From Antibiotic-Resistant Infections Could Reach 39 Million by 2050, Study Suggests

A new paper analyzes three decades of fatalities around the world and predicts how "superbugs" will affect human health in the future | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Four Places to Find Fossilized Shark Teeth in the United States

Sharks have been losing teeth for 400 million years. Here’s a guide to uncovering some of these plentiful fossils across the country | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

An 11-Year-Old Boy Rescued a Mysterious Artwork From the Dump. It Turned Out to Be a 500-Year-Old Renaissance Print

Experts have confirmed that "Knight, Death and the Devil" is an engraving by the renowned German artist Albrecht Dürer | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

The Sprawling Sculpture at the Center of the National World War I Memorial Has Been Unveiled in Washington, D.C.

"A Soldier's Journey," a 58-foot-long bronze artwork depicting vivid scenes from the war, was illuminated for the first time at a ceremony on September 13 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

The Madcap History of Mad Magazine Will Unleash Your Inner Class Clown

In a twist befitting its pages, the satirical, anti-establishment publication that delivered laughs and hijinks to generations of young readers gets the respect it always deserved with a new museum exhibition | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

This Female Civil War Soldier Participated in the Bloodiest Battle in American History and Spied on the South—or Did She?

Historians say that Sarah Emma Edmonds exaggerated many aspects of her wartime experiences. Still, she bravely served in the Union Army, becoming one of hundreds of women who fought in the conflict in secret | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

See Footage of a Thief Breaking Into a London Gallery and Stealing Banksy's Iconic 'Girl With Balloon'

Officials launched an investigation and recovered the $360,000 print less than a week after it vanished from Grove Gallery. Two men have been charged for the crime | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Rare Yellow-Eyed Penguin Wins New Zealand's Bird of the Year Contest

The noisy-but-shy bird, known as the hoiho, has earned the most votes for a second time amid threats to its survival | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Divers Discover the Long-Lost Wreckage of a Passenger Steamship That Sank in a Hit-and-Run in 1856

"Le Lyonnais" descended into the depths off the coast of Massachusetts after colliding with the "Adriatic," a sailing vessel that left the floundering steamship to fend for itself | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

No Longer Full of Commuters, Atlanta's Old Subway Cars Are Now Filled With Fish

Two Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority railcars were added to an artificial reef off the coast of Georgia to create more wildlife habitat | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

A Mysterious Seismic Signal Lasted Nine Days Last Year. It Was a Mega-Tsunami Caused by Climate Change, Researchers Say

A melting glacier caused a mountain in Greenland to collapse into a narrow fjord, setting off an oscillating wave that rattled seismic detectors around the world | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

A Thief Replaced This Iconic Churchill Portrait With a Fake. Two Years Later, the Original Has Been Recovered

Investigators discovered that the original print of "The Roaring Lion" had been sold to a buyer in Italy | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

See the Wonders of Bird Engineering in These Photos of Intricate Nests

In a new book, a curator at England's Natural History Museum describes rare and interesting nests and eggs—from the house sparrow to the village weaver—and the lessons they hold for avian conservation | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

This Remote Region in Spain Could Pay You Up to $16,000 to Move There

Officials in Extremadura are hoping to attract digital nomads and tech workers in a bid to boost the region's shrinking population | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Easter Island's Ancient Population Never Faced Ecological Collapse, Suggests Another Study

New DNA analysis adds to growing research indicating the famous Pacific island did not collapse from overuse of resources before the arrival of Europeans | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

The Seven Most Interesting Discoveries We’ve Made by Exploring Saturn

Scientists continue to learn new things about the planet, its sweeping rings and its many moons | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

How to See a Stunning Supermoon and Partial Lunar Eclipse on Tuesday

September’s full moon delivers a rare trifecta for lunar enthusiasts: a supermoon, a partial eclipse and a harvest moon | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

This Forgotten Copy of the Constitution Discovered in a Filing Cabinet Could Sell for Millions

The historic text, which bears the signature of Secretary of Congress Charles Thomson, was one of 100 copies ordered on September 28, 1787 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

See 11 Winning Images From the Astronomy Photographer of the Year Contest That Showcase the Wonder of Space

From a solar eclipse to a dolphin-like nebula, these otherworldly sights are captured in sharp detail by astrophotographers from around the world | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Basquiat and Banksy Take Center Stage at the Hirshhorn

At an upcoming exhibition, the Smithsonian museum will display works by the two boundary-breaking artists for the first time | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Frank Lloyd Wright Designed His First Prairie-Style House When He Was 26. Now, It's for Sale

The young architect created the Winslow house for a couple living in a suburb of Chicago in 1893. The project would help launch his independent career | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Birds Form Surprising Relationships With Other Avian Species During Migration, Study Suggests

New research indicates that birds are not alone while migrating—and sharing space with other species may even help them on the journey | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Everything You Wanted to Know About the Longest Nerve in the Body

Like a highway system, the vagus nerve branches profusely from your brain through your organs to marshal bodily functions, including aspects of the mind such as mood, pleasure and fear | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Plans to Modernize Notre-Dame’s Stained-Glass Windows Move Ahead Despite Heritage Experts' Rejection

The French Ministry of Culture has selected eight finalists to design replacement windows for the celebrated cathedral—and not everyone is happy | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

See 15 Amazing Photos of Beautiful Birds

These Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest images celebrate our feathered friends | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

On This Day in 1899, a Car Fatally Struck a Pedestrian for the First Time in American History

Henry Hale Bliss' death presaged the battle between the 20th-century automobile lobby and walkers in U.S. cities | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Ancient DNA Reveals Neanderthal Group Was Isolated for 50,000 Years

A new study, based on the remains of a Neanderthal nicknamed Thorin, is shaking up what archaeologists long thought about these early humans in Europe | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Astronauts Achieve First-Ever Private Spacewalk on Polaris Dawn Mission

This morning, tech billionaire Jared Isaacman opened the hatch on a SpaceX Dragon capsule in Earth orbit, as cheering erupted on a livestream | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

See 15 Stunning Images From the Ocean Photographer of the Year Awards

The winning and highly commended underwater photography spotlights breathtaking animal behavior, conservation needs and the otherworldly environment of Earth's oceans | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

This Ancient Celtic Helmet Is the Oldest Ever Found in Poland

Unearthed at the Łysa Góra archaeological site, the artifact, some 2,300 years old, is a prime example of Celtic metalworking | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

The Rebellious History of Mooncakes, the Note-Passing Dessert That Liberated China

During Mid-Autumn Festival, Chinese around the world eat the miniature molded and filled cakes to wish their families wealth and happiness | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

This Map Lets You See When Magnificent Fall Foliage Will Peak in Your Area

Use the interactive tool's week-by-week, county-by-county predictions to start planning your leaf-peeping trips across the United States | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

Tiny Trackers Are Revealing the Secret Lives of Tens of Thousands of Birds

The Motus Wildlife Tracking System has put nearly 50,000 incredibly lightweight radio transmitters on birds, bats and insects. We caught up with an ornithologist to learn more about where these creatures are flying | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago

See Rare Footage of a Young Wombat Caught on a Wildlife Camera in Australia

Just 400 northern hairy-nosed wombats remain in the wild, and conservationists say the new videos signal the critically endangered species’ breeding success | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 2 months ago