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Outer Space, our solar system and Earth’s geography, geology and human environmentDiscover Smithsonian articles by place—including Earth, the solar system and outer space.
Students Cheated Their Way to Quiz Bowl Wins
The school was just stripped of four quiz bowl championships, after evidence surfaced that some of its students might have sneaked a peak at the questions before hand
March 25, 2013 |
By Rose Eveleth
Events March 26-28: Student Sit-Ins, Environmental Art and Female Historical Perspectives
This week, re-enact an event that encouraged civil rights, turn water bottles into art and see American history through women's eyes
March 25, 2013 |
By Paul Bisceglio
It Snowed So Hard During This Soccer Game That Costa Rica Wants a Rematch With the U.S.
It was snowing so hard that they had to use a bright yellow ball to even see what was going on
March 25, 2013 |
By Rose Eveleth
Lockheed Martin Has Crazy-Fast Quantum Computers And Plans on Actually Using Them
The defense contractor will be the first company to use quantum computers on a commercial scale
March 22, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
Physicists Use Ytterbium Ions to Make March Madness Picks
Even knowledgable fans aren't great at making predictions, so quantum physics may be the surest way to cash in on the madness
March 22, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
People in Israel Really Are Eating Swarming Locusts
While there are simply too many locusts to eat the swarm out of existence, Israelis who do tuck in can enjoy a healthy, kosher snack
March 22, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
The Secret to Olive Oil’s Anti-Alzheimer’s Powers
A natural substance found in olive oil called oleocanthal helps to block and destroy plaque build up in the brain that causes Alzheimer's
March 22, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Pediatricians Back Gay Marriage
The American Academy of Pediatrics says that allowing a child's parents to marry is good for kids
March 21, 2013 |
By Rose Eveleth
For Truck Drivers, Coffee May Save Lives
Drivers who drank caffeine-laden beverages were 63 percent less likely to crash than those who did not - even if they were more sleep deprived
March 21, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
An Apollo Rocket Engine Was Just Saved from the Bottom of the Atlantic
These booster rockets sent Apollo astronauts blasting to the Moon
March 21, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
UPDATED: Has the Voyager 1 Probe Finally Left the Solar System?
New data indicate the spacecraft, launched in 1977, has neared interstellar space, more than 11 billion miles away from the Sun
March 20, 2013 |
By Joseph Stromberg
How Does One Actually Shrink a Head?
How does one take a regular sized human skull and miniaturize it?
March 20, 2013 |
By Rose Eveleth
After 17 Years, the Northeast Is About to Be Blanketed by a Swarm of Cicadas
An inch and a half long with bright red eyes, the swarm of Brood II cicadas is coming
March 20, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
From the Big Bang to the End of the Earth and Everything in Between, the Two Minute History of America
A fun video by a Minnesota high school student tries to capture all of human history in just two minutes
March 20, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
It’s Pineapple Season, But Does Your Fruit Come From Hawaii?
While Hawaii was once the big kahuna in pineapple production, it's since been overtaken by other global powers
March 20, 2013 |
By Jesse Rhodes
‘Bone-Eating Zombie Worm’ And Eight Other New Species Live on the First Whale Skeleton Found in Antarctica
The Minke whale skeleton was probably on the seafloor for at least several decades and is only the sixth natural whale carcass ever found
March 20, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Warmer Temperatures Speed Tropical Plant Growth
New research challenges key assumptions about plant growth at increased temperatures
March 19, 2013 |
By Leah Binkovitz
Ecotourists Have Changed Stingrays’ Behavior—And Not for the Better
There might be a dark side to the so-called "interactive ecotourism" business
March 19, 2013 |
By Rose Eveleth
Hundreds of Emaciated Stranded Sea Lion Pups Are Washing Ashore in California
No one knows what is causing the unprecedented strandings, and the number of pups in need of help is only increasing
March 18, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Nixon Prolonged Vietnam War for Political Gain—And Johnson Knew About It, Newly Unclassified Tapes Suggest
Nixon ran on a platform that opposed the Vietnam war, but to win the election, he needed the war to continue
March 18, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz


