Oceans
What Makes Some Orca Whales Love a Good Belly Rub?
Some pods have been observed rubbing themselves on rocky beaches; scientists are still working to understand why
Starving Sea Lions Are Piling Up on California Beaches
It's the third year of a crisis that's confusing scientists
Scientists Have Imaged the Base of a Tectonic Plate
The discovery of a slippery layer off the coast of New Zealand could help explain plate movement
What’s Causing California’s Bright Pink Sea Slug Bloom?
They might be fun to look at, but they're not necessarily good news
A 10,000-Year-Old Forest Has Been Discovered, And It's Under Water
Ancient oak trees found on the bottom of the North Sea represent a prehistoric woodland that likely spanned thousands of acres
Here’s Why Sharks Prefer Salt Water
New research shows that sharks sink in fresh water
Vinegar-Like Acid Rain May Have Fallen During Earth’s Worst Extinction
Vanilla-flavored rocks hint at a planet scoured by intense acid rain during the Great Dying 252 million years ago
An Albino Dolphin Was Spotted Off the Coast of Florida
It is only the 15th albino dolphin sighting recorded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
New Deep-Sea Snails Are Nature’s Own Punk Rockers
The spikes on one hardcore species inspired scientists to name it after Joe Strummer of the Clash, who was also an ardent environmentalist
The Same Guy Keeps Spending Insane Amounts of Money to Buy Japan’s First Tuna of the Season
This year, he bought it for $37,500—which he considered cheap
Disco Clams Are Flashy
Their orange lips twinkle in a particularly funky display
Threat of Being Eaten Doesn’t Deter Dumpling Squid From Sex
The adorable cephalopods seem to rate mating higher on their list of priorities than survival
Our Answers to the Most Burning Questions of 2014
Here are the ten most popular installments of "Ask Smithsonian" this year
Ten Cool Science Stories You May Have Missed in 2014
ICYMI, there's a newfound coral reef in Iraq, the smallest force has been detected and more in this year's surprising science
In an Era of Superstorms, This Exhibit Captures Our Shifting Relationship with the Earth's Rising Seas
"Sink or Swim" shows how we're learning to be smarter and more resilient in our response to increasingly unpredictable oceans and rivers
At 26,700 Feet, This Is the Deepest-Swimming Fish Known
Researchers found a new fish in the depths of the Mariana Trench
When Texas Was at the Bottom of the Sea
A hike to the “top of Texas,” the world’s most famous fossil reef, leads to a new sense of the sublime
The Top 12 Ocean Stories That Made Waves in 2014
The seas served up some compelling headlines this year, from celebrity fashion to solving the mystery of the melting starfish
Fuel from Seawater? What's the Catch?
Scientists at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory recently flew a model plane using a liquid hydrocarbon fuel they sourced from the ocean
The Ocean Contains Over Five Trillion Pieces of Plastic Weighing More than 250,000 Tons
These frightening figures represent the most robust estimate of marine plastic pollution calculated to date
Page 57 of 72