Environmental Preservation

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

Icon of the Seas successfully passed an initial round of sea trials.

The World's Largest Cruise Ship Is Nearly 1,200 Feet Long

Scheduled to debut in January, the vessel can accommodate 5,600 guests and 2,350 crew members

Members of the Quelcanca community in Peru return from planting trees in the mountains, hoisting their country's flag.

These Stunning Photography Projects Tell Stories of Conservation

A new grant from Vital Impacts funds long-term efforts to document environmental solutions in the photographers' own communities

The French government is pushing travelers on certain routes to use high-speed rail.

France Just Banned Short-Haul Flights. Why Are So Few Routes Affected?

To reduce carbon emissions, lawmakers want travelers to opt for trains on shorter journeys

Ski resorts in the Rocky Mountains received record-setting snowfall this year, which likely inspired more people to go skiing and snowboarding.

Ski Areas Reported More Visits Than Ever This Past Winter

Heavy snowfall—particularly in the Rocky Mountains—attracted record numbers of American skiers and snowboarders

None

Our Sustainable Future

The latest on how climate change affects life on Earth today and on what solutions scientists, including those at the Smithsonian, are innovating

A sadhill crane flies over the San Luis Valley.

Planet Positive

From stories about rebounding species to dispatches about green innovations, <em>Smithsonian</em> magazine shares environmental practices that are working.

The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is located in the Norwegian Arctic on the remote island of Spitsbergen.

Take a Virtual Tour of the 'Doomsday' Seed Vault

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

A screenshot of an interactive walkthrough of the Hantan River in Korea

See Google Street View Images of Korean Demilitarized Zone

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

Ponderosa pines at Yosemite National Park

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

Tourists flocked to Walker Canyon to see the poppies during the superbloom in 2019.

Will California See a Wildflower Superbloom This Spring?

If the swaths of show-stopping poppies do appear, officials urge tourists to act responsibly

The Tongass National Forest is home to a variety of wildlife, including bald eagles, salmon, brown bears and wolves.

U.S. Restores Protections for Alaska’s Tongass National Forest

A new federal rule restricts road construction and logging in the country’s largest national forest

Pollinators, including bees, are suffering because of human activities.

Shrinking Pollinator Populations Could Be Killing 427,000 People Per Year

New research explores the relationship between human health and crop loss due to pollination deficits around the world

Emmett Lewis&#39; ancestor Cudjo Lewis was one of the last survivors of the Clotilda.

These Descendants Never Forgot the Story of the Last American Slave Ship

A new Netflix documentary follows the families of the "Clotilda" captives as they grapple with how their past informs their future

An underwater view of the V-1302 John Mahn, which has rested at the bottom of the North Sea since February 1942

A World War II Shipwreck Is Leaking Toxic Chemicals Into the North Sea

Researchers discovered nickel, copper, arsenic, explosives and chemicals found in fossil fuels at the site

Redwood National Park in California is home to Hyperion, the tallest living tree in the world.

The World's Tallest Tree Is Officially Off-Limits

Trespassing bushwhackers are causing significant damage to the surrounding forest

In their dissent, the court&#39;s three liberal judges wrote that their fellow justices had stripped the EPA of &ldquo;the power to respond to the most pressing environmental challenge of our time.&rdquo;

How the Clean Air Act Came to Be

A new Supreme Court ruling curbs the EPA's ability to regulate carbon pollution under the 1970 legislation

The EPA is recommending lower levels of PFAS in drinking water.

EPA Warns Against Toxic ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Drinking Water

The federal agency’s new limits on drinking water contaminants take aim at synthetic substances called PFAS that are linked with health issues

Aerial view of flooding in Livingston, Montana&mdash;a gateway town near Yellowstone National Park&mdash;on June 14, 2022

What Extreme Flooding in Yellowstone Means for the National Park's Gateway Towns

These communities rely almost entirely on tourism for their existence—yet too much tourism, not to mention climate change, can destroy them

An octopus, sea star, bivalves and dozens of cup coral all share the same overhang in an area adjacent to the Hudson Canyon off the coast of New York and New Jersey.

This Underwater Canyon Could Become America's Newest Marine Sanctuary

Hudson Canyon, the largest submarine canyon on the East Coast, is home to hundreds of species of fish and marine mammals

Page 2 of 16