Genetic Evidence Ties Covid's Origin to Raccoon Dogs

New data support the theory that the virus causing Covid-19 first spread to humans from animals | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 hours ago

China Fully Reopens to Travelers After Three Years of Closures

Hoping to boost its tourism industry, the country is now issuing all types of visas | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 hours ago

These Sea Stars Are Literally Wasting Away—but They May Soon Receive Protection

Sunflower sea stars have been recommended for Endangered Species Act protection as disease leads them to “disintegrate into gooey masses” | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 16 hours ago

Salmon Spread Might Just Be the Most Alaskan Food

The smoky snack captures the state’s love for both salmon and preserved foods | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 hours ago

Burning Space Junk Creates Mysterious Lights in California Sky

Bright streaks observed Friday were jettisoned equipment from the International Space Station re-entering Earth’s atmosphere | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 hours ago

Paintings by Rescue Dog Named van Gogh Raise Thousands for Charity

A bidder has already offered $10,000 for the four-legged artist's rendition of 'The Starry Night' | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 18 hours ago

The Long History of Forcing Jews to Wear Anti-Semitic Badges

The practice was common in medieval Europe | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 23 hours ago

You Can Apply for Free 'Masterclass of Happiness' in Finland

For the fifth year in a row, Finland ranked as the happiest nation in the world | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

Fire Reveals Iron Staples Holding Notre-Dame Cathedral Together

The Paris landmark is the first known Gothic cathedral to use iron in this way, researchers say | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

This Dinosaur Had a 50-Foot-Long Neck, Scientists Say

They compared vertebrae discovered in 1987 to more complete remains to make this new estimate | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

One of Europe's Last Free-Flowing Rivers Declared a National Park

Albania will protect more than 31,000 acres of land, including the undammed Vjosa River | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

Scientists Spot Recent Volcanic Activity on Venus

The findings in 30-year-old radar image data all but confirm that volcanoes on Earth’s hellish sister planet are still active today | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

Venus Williams Is Joining a New Push to Restore Nina Simone's Childhood Home

The singer-songwriter learned to play the piano in the 650-square-foot house | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

Is Saliva the Next Frontier in Cancer Detection?

Scientists are finding tumor signals in spit that could be key to developing diagnostic tests for various types of cancer | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

See the New Moonwalk Spacesuit Designed for NASA's Artemis Program

The space agency has tapped private company Axiom Space to develop the sleek new attire for its moon-bound astronauts | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

Movements Capturing the Spiritual Roots of Black Culture

A new exhibition of rarely seen images and artifacts chronicles the African American religious experience | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

National Audubon Society Votes to Keep the Name of an Enslaver

The move has been criticized by some local chapters that have severed ties with naturalist and slaveholder John James Audubon | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 3 days ago

Take a Virtual Tour of the 'Doomsday' Seed Vault

The impressive depository carefully preserves over one million seed samples in its Arctic location | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 4 days ago

Vinyl Records Outsell CDs for First Time Since 1987

Music lovers in the United States bought 41 million vinyl albums and 33 million CDs in 2022 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 4 days ago

See 15 Amazing Wildlife Images From the Sony World Photography Awards

The contest showcases the work of some of the planet’s best photographers | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 4 days ago

EPA Proposes First Limits for Toxic 'Forever Chemicals' in Drinking Water

Under the rule, public water systems would monitor levels of six types of long-lasting contaminants known as PFAS | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 4 days ago

North America's First Hydrogen-Powered Train Will Debut This Summer

While traveling a 90-minute route, the Train de Charlevoix will emit only water vapor | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 4 days ago

This Danish Church Is a Beacon for How to Protect Wildlife From Artificial Light

A proposed design looks to automatically adjust the exterior lighting on the Anholt Island building to the moonlight | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 4 days ago

The Tenacious Women Reporters Who Helped Expose the Boston Strangler

A new film explores Loretta McLaughlin and Jean Cole's efforts to unmask a serial killer believed to have murdered 13 women between 1962 and 1964 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 5 days ago

Here's How Wildfires Can Destroy the Ozone Layer

Massive blazes like the ones in Australia three years ago deplete the crucial blanket surrounding our planet through chemical reactions in the atmosphere | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 5 days ago

See Google Street View Images of Korean Demilitarized Zone

Established in 1953, the off-limits area has become a haven for plants and wildlife | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 5 days ago

See the James Webb Telescope's Rare New Image of a Dying Star

The star is on the cusp of exploding in a supernova and may offer insights into the universe's so-called "dust budget crisis" | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 5 days ago

California Resort Drops Racial Slur From Its Name

The resort worked with representatives from the Washoe Tribe to implement the name change | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 5 days ago

America's Waterways: The Past, Present and Future

In a series of articles, Smithsonian magazine highlights all that draws our eyes to our nation's fresh and coastal waters | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 5 days ago

How 'Daylighting' Buried Waterways Is Revitalizing Cities Across America

Urban centers are exhuming creeks and streams once covered up to control floodwater—and bringing life back in the process | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 5 days ago

The Science Behind the Multiverse in 'Everything Everywhere All At Once'

The movie that won Best Picture imagines a reality composed of an uncountable number of universes | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 6 days ago

Monument to Harriet Tubman Unveiled in New Jersey

The 25-foot-tall memorial celebrates Newark’s connection to the Underground Railroad | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 6 days ago

These Photographs of Spirituality in America Will Speak to Your Soul

A new volume from the National Museum of the African American History and Culture explores religion in the Black community | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 6 days ago

A 5,000-Mile-Wide Mass of Seaweed Is Heading for Florida and Mexico

Known as sargassum, the algae can hurt tourism as it piles up on beaches and starts to rot | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 6 days ago

A Nostalgic Trip Awaits at the World's Largest Lunchbox Museum

Take a journey back to your elementary school cafeteria with a visit to the Georgia outpost | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 6 days ago

1,000-Year-Old Gold Earrings and Silver Coins Unearthed in the Netherlands

Lorenzo Ruijter, a Dutch treasure hunter, discovered the cache with his metal detector | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 6 days ago

DNA Buried in Sediment Helps Scientists Picture Past Ecosystems

Examining the evidence offers a way to look back at now damaged environments | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 7 days ago

Man's Rare Tickborne Illness Was Caused by an Unexpected Bacteria

Until now, the bacteria from a lone star tick had not been reported to cause tickborne relapsing fever | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 7 days ago

Coca-Cola Uses Famous Paintings By Warhol, Munch and More to Sell Soda

The company's new ad campaign, "Masterpiece," brings iconic artworks to life | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 7 days ago

Fans Worry They Won't Live Long Enough to See Richard Linklater's 'Merrily We Roll Along'

The director is shooting his adaptation of the Sondheim musical over 20 years | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 7 days ago

Officials Delay Vote to Rename Colorado's Mount Evans

The mountain is named for John Evans, who oversaw the Sand Creek Massacre in 1864 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 7 days ago

Stone Flakes Made by Monkeys Raise Questions About Early Human Tools

The flakes accidentally produced by long-tailed macaques resemble those thought to have been made by early humans | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 7 days ago

Meet the Man Spending 100 Days Underwater for Science

Joseph Dituri aims to set a world record, conduct research and inspire students to conserve the oceans | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 7 days ago

How Artists' Day Jobs Shape Their Craft

A new exhibition examines the generative relationship between work and creativity | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 10 days ago

Workers Stumble Upon Lost Courbet Painting in University Basement

After a years-long authentication process, “La Source du Lison” goes on display in Philadelphia | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 10 days ago

See the First Complete Map of an Insect's Brain

Over 12 years, scientists charted more than 3,000 neurons and the nearly 550,000 connections between them in a larval fruit fly | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 10 days ago

Traute Lafrenz, Last Surviving Member of Anti-Nazi Resistance Group the White Rose, Dies at 103

During World War II, the rest of the movement's core members were executed for distributing leaflets critical of the Nazi regime | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 10 days ago

California's 'Zombie Forests' Are Cheating Death—but Maybe Not for Long

A fifth of conifer forests in the state’s Sierra Nevada mountains are stranded in unsuitably warm conditions | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 10 days ago