Science

In the past decade, paleontologists have named several new dinosaur species and found that some previously discovered species belonged to their own groups.

How Many Dinosaurs Remain Undiscovered?

Paleontologists say more non-avian dinos are waiting to be uncovered than have previously been found

“Only among the hills with hare and kestrel will you observe what once this land was like before we made it fat for human use.” — “The Colony” by John Hewitt

These Surfers Want to Restore Temperate Rainforests to Ireland

In the rainy mountains along the country’s west coast, a movement has begun to bring back an ecosystem that has been gone for centuries

Antler coral can host different types of algae, sometimes resulting in differences in color. 

This Pacific Coral Can Withstand Warming Waters With the Help of Algae

The heat-resistant organism in antler coral may help it adapt as ocean temperatures increase

Trub, a leftover of the brewing process, could be key to scientists’ quest to develop a cheap, effective artificial scent guide for hatchery-raised salmon.

How Far Will Salmon Swim for a Craft Beer?

Researchers in Oregon hope a surprising aroma will lure stray fish back to their home hatcheries

An orca hunts sea lion pups on a beach in Argentina.

Five Astounding Orca Behaviors Explained, From Ramming Boats to Hunting Great White Sharks

The apex predators also surge onto shorelines to capture seals and engage in mysterious greeting ceremonies

Vertical farming can produce as much as traditional farming while using less water and less energy—if executed correctly.

Empty Office Buildings Are Being Turned Into Vertical Farms

With office usage hovering near 50 percent of pre-pandemic levels, cities are putting the underutilized space to new use growing food

Can a shark be aerodynamic? Like a rocket shooting up into the sky, aiming toward the sun, this blue shark near Pico Island in Portugal’s Azores archipelago rips through the water. Blue sharks’ average top speed is around 40 miles per hour.

15 Shark Photos That Will Terrify and Delight You This Summer

In a collection pulled from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest, catch a wave with these predators of the sea

A nesting Hawaiian green sea turtle, or honu in Hawaiian, struggles while trapped in a hole in the sea wall on Tern Island in 2014. This female was rescued, but in 2021 at least seven females died after being trapped on the island.

The Lonely Battle to Save Species on a Tiny Speck in the Pacific

As Tern Island, a former military outpost in the Hawaiian archipelago, falls apart and harms turtles, birds, seals and more, scientists wonder what’s next

Humans hunt, kill or capture a massive number of species. Surprisingly, most of this is for non-food reasons.

Humans Take Out More Wild Species Than Any Other Predator on Earth

We kill, collect or otherwise use about 15,000 vertebrate species

Data from Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera were used to make this extremely detailed image of the Southern Ring Nebula.

Seven Amazing Accomplishments the James Webb Telescope Achieved in Its First Year

The observatory has yielded jaw-dropping shots—and surprising facts—about our universe

Plastics typically contain chemical additives like metals and dyes, which can leach out and affect organisms nearby.

Microplastic Exposure Makes Microbes More Virulent

Laboratory research shows that someway, somehow, PVC plastic breeds antimicrobial resistance

A variety of saber-toothed animals have evolved to fill different niches.

Eight Menacing Saber-Toothed Creatures That Stalked the Earth Long Ago

From before the dinosaurs to the Ice Age, several mammals and their forerunners sported the iconic, curved teeth

Unfinished pencils at the Musgrave plant in Shelbyville, Tennessee—“The Pencil City.”

See Inside One of America’s Last Pencil Factories

The family-owned facility in Tennessee produces more than 70 million pencils annually

GUN SITE Gun Site was constructed on the former Anchor Ranch, a 320-acre property to the west of the main research site. The area had a flat, empty space where scientists studied projectiles and ballistics. Its main drawback was its proximity to a road, but efforts to blockade traffic during tests were largely successful.

An Exclusive Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Los Alamos Lab Where J. Robert Oppenheimer Created the Atomic Bomb

In never-before-seen photographs, explore the secret U.S. facility and home to the Manhattan Project scientists who developed the first nuclear weapon

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History paleoanthropologist Briana Pobiner came across this hominin tibia in Kenya’s Nairobi National Museum. The magnified area shows cut marks.

Our Human Relatives Butchered and Ate Each Other 1.45 Million Years Ago

Telltale marks on a bone from an early human’s leg could be the earliest evidence of cannibalism

Apparatus for administering nitrous oxide and other anesthetic gases

These Objects Tell the Story of Human-Driven Climate Change

Smithsonian curators dig into the collections to find artifacts that illustrate how we arrived at this moment

A bandicoot uses its nose to sniff out subterranean insects, leaving behind shallow holes known as “snout pokes.”

The Unlikely Survival Story of Australia's Bandicoots

The defenseless marsupial was nearly wiped out by invasive species. Now rescuers are pinning hopes on a remnant island population

Analyzing DNA found in the water off Greenland, researchers have found the signs of species on the move.

The Atlantification of the Arctic Ocean is Underway

The discovery of a tiny fish far from its normal range is a poignant reminder of the changes that are already happening

Algae collected by the artist while free diving off Point La Jolla, California

Stunning Seaweed Prints Capture Life Underwater

Free diver Oriana Poindexter creates cyanotypes of kelp collected off the California coast

A 1658 map of Iceland, reprinted from Abraham Ortelius’ Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, includes a sea monster known for catching its fish through cunning.

What Medieval Manuscripts Reveal About the Hidden History of Whales

A clever cetacean feeding trick may have launched a legend

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