Smithsonian Magazine: Explore History, Science, Arts & Culture

Estimates of the number of Pacific Islanders captured by blackbirders and forced to work on cotton and sugar plantations in Fiji and Australia range from 61,610 to more than 100,000.

How 'Blackbirders' Forced Tens of Thousands of Pacific Islanders Into Slavery After the Civil War

The decline of the American South's cotton and sugar industries paved the way for plantations in British-controlled Fiji and Australia, where victims of "blackbirding" endured horrific working conditions

Computer simulated global view of Venus' northern hemisphere.

Did Venus Have Oceans? This Surprising New Study Suggests Not, a Theory That Could Upend the Search for Extraterrestrial Life

Smart News

The Ten Best Science Books of 2024

December 9, 2024 8:00 a.m.

Chaotic Traffic From Horse-Drawn Carriages Inspired the World's First Traffic Lights

December 9, 2024 5:00 a.m.

A Woman Appeared on the English Stage for the First Time on This Day in 1660, Transforming the World of Theater Forever

December 8, 2024

When Instant Replay Debuted During the Broadcast of a College Football Game in 1963, It Revolutionized the Way We Watch Sports

December 7, 2024

Researchers Thought They Found Amelia Earhart's Missing Plane. It Turned Out to Be a Plane-Shaped Pile of Rocks

December 6, 2024

NASA Pushes Back America's Return to the Moon to 2027, With the Next Artemis Program Flight Slated for 2026

December 6, 2024

Latest Features

Smithsonian magazine’s top science titles this year.

The Ten Best Science Books of 2024

December 9, 2024 8:00 a.m.

An annual event for more than 50 years, the Albuquerque International Balloon Festival has grown to become the largest in the United States.

Brighten Your Day With These 15 Photos of Beautiful Balloons From Around the World

December 6, 2024

In our efforts to increase and diffuse knowledge, we highly recommend these titles this year.

The Best Books of 2024

December 6, 2024

Kerry Washington stars as Charity Adams in Tyler Perry's newest film, The Six Triple Eight.

The Real Story Behind Netflix's 'The Six Triple Eight,' a New Tyler Perry Film About the Women of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion

Updated: December 6, 2024 | Originally Published: February 13, 2023

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The Ten Best Books About Travel of 2024

December 6, 2024

Estimates of the number of Pacific Islanders captured by blackbirders and forced to work on cotton and sugar plantations in Fiji and Australia range from 61,610 to more than 100,000.

How 'Blackbirders' Forced Tens of Thousands of Pacific Islanders Into Slavery After the Civil War

December 5, 2024

This year's list includes Clouds in Space, The Manicurist's Daughter and The Ministry of Time.

The Best Books of 2024, as Chosen by Smithsonian Scholars

December 4, 2024

Ships float in Aasiaat’s harbor.

As Greenland’s Ice Sheet Melts, an Island Town Rises

December 3, 2024

Current Issue
December 2024

Smithsonian magazine December 2024 issue cover

Most Popular

1.

A Little Boy Found a Strange Stone on the Beach. Archaeologists Told Him It Was a Neanderthal's Hand Ax

The artifact is now on display at a museum in southern England. Experts say the find is "so rare that most qualified archaeologists would never find one themselves"

2.

German Archaeologists Discovered the Iconic Bust of Nefertiti in an Ancient Egyptian Sculptor’s Studio. Find Out Why Their Discovery Is Now One of Archaeology’s Most Controversial

For over a century, ever since the bust was found on this day in 1912, the world has debated who should rightfully own this work of timeless beauty

3.

A Mysterious Shipwreck Rests Just 20 Feet Below the Surface. It May Be Connected to Vasco da Gama's Final Voyage

Researchers think a coral-covered vessel discovered off the Kenyan coast could be the "São Jorge," a galleon that sank 500 years ago

4.

Researchers Thought They Found Amelia Earhart's Missing Plane. It Turned Out to Be a Plane-Shaped Pile of Rocks

Months after capturing a promising sonar image, they learned that the blurry object was nothing more than a rock formation that resembled the aviator's Lockheed 10-E Electra aircraft

5.

This 300-Year-Old Stradivarius Violin Could Become the Most Expensive Musical Instrument Ever Sold at Auction

Crafted by the renowned violin maker Antonio Stradivari in 1714, the rare instrument is expected to sell for between $12 and $18 million

Special Report

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Our Sustainable Future

A hub dedicated to the latest on how global change affects life on Earth today and on what solutions scientists, including those at the Smithsonian, are researching to build a more sustainable planet

View Full Report

Featured Stories

In Miami, the Nation’s First Chief Heat Officer Charts a Course for Surviving on a Warming Planet

Inside the Effort to Save Earth's Biocrusts

Can the Noise in Sports Arenas Be Turned Into Electricity?

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Smithsonian Videos

Preview thumbnail for video '10 Fun Facts About Jellyfish

10 Fun Facts About Jellyfish

Preview thumbnail for video 'The Ultimate Skywatching Guide for Every Season

The Ultimate Skywatching Guide for Every Season

Preview thumbnail for video '10 Enchanting Butterfly Facts Revealed!

10 Enchanting Butterfly Facts Revealed!

Photo of the day

Three Nepali Sisters were taking tea and gossiping when the photo was taken. it was also in Num village in east nepal during my trek around Makalu base camp on 2023.

A Memorable Trek Around Makalu Base Camp, Nepal

History

Visitors gather at the foot of Monkey Mountain, an attraction at Frank Buck's Jungle Camp in Massapequa, New York, around 1939.

When 170 Wild Monkeys Escaped From a 'Jungle Camp' and Terrorized New York

In 1935, dozens of rhesus macaques absconded from Frank Buck's Long Island menagerie. Nearly a century later, 43 members of the same species broke out of a South Carolina research facility

Smithsonian's picks for the best history books of 2024 include The Barn, Eden Undone and The Wide Wide Sea.

The Ten Best History Books of 2024

Paul Mescal as Lucius Verus in Gladiator II, which tells a heavily fictionalized story of the joint reign of brothers Geta and Caracalla

The Real History Behind Ridley Scott's 'Gladiator II' and Life as a Fighter in the Ancient Roman Arena

Science

A view of the soft-bottomed Los Angeles River below the 400-foot-long Taylor Yard Bridge in Elysian Valley. The newest Taylor Yard parcel, currently fenced off as it undergoes toxic remediation, can be seen on the far right.

How the Arrival of an Endangered Bird Indicates What’s Possible for the L.A. River

Could the waterway that the city was built around make a comeback?

By examining the fossils of ancient creatures, scientists are able to see the origins of features that make mammals different from other animals.

How to Make a Mammal in Nine Evolutionary Steps

A photo of Neptune, taken by the Voyager 2 probe, with the colors rebalanced to represent its truest appearance

The Six Most Amazing Discoveries We’ve Made About Neptune

Innovation

Thirty-six homes—the world’s last topped with a traditional eelgrass roof—all sit here on Laeso.

Could Eelgrass Be the Next Big Bio-Based Building Material?

On the island of Laeso in Denmark, one man is reviving the lost art of eelgrass thatching and, in doing so, bringing attention to a plant that has great potential

John Larson's original polygraph, a gift to the Smithsonian from the Berkeley Police Department, where Larson was the first rookie cop with a PhD.

Why the Creator of One of the First ‘Lie Detectors’ Lived to Regret His Invention

“Cité Mémoire” is a digital multimedia installation illustrating the moments that have shaped Montreal’s last 400 years.

Cities Are Projecting Their History Onto Streets and Buildings After Dark

Arts & Culture

The theme of this year's creepy doll contest at the History Center of Olmsted County is "Circus After Dark."

The Creepy Doll Contest Is Back—and It's Time to Cast Your Vote for the Most Terrifying Toy

Step right up and see the spooky circus dolls—from creepy clowns to frightening fortune-tellers—in a Minnesota museum's vintage toy collection

Mask, Jackson Pollock, 1941

Before He Created His Vibrant Drip Paintings, Jackson Pollock Took Inspiration From Pablo Picasso

The Ofaerufoss waterfall is part of the Nyrdri-Ofaera River, meaning the “impassable northern river.” The river flows into Eldgja, or the “Canyon of Fire.”

Go Chasing Waterfalls With These 15 Awe-Inspiring Images

Travel

“Cité Mémoire” is a digital multimedia installation illustrating the moments that have shaped Montreal’s last 400 years.

Cities Are Projecting Their History Onto Streets and Buildings After Dark

Pedestrians in Montreal, Grand Rapids and other locations can time-travel thanks to installations that map historical scenes directly onto the cityscapes

The Ofaerufoss waterfall is part of the Nyrdri-Ofaera River, meaning the “impassable northern river.” The river flows into Eldgja, or the “Canyon of Fire.”

Go Chasing Waterfalls With These 15 Awe-Inspiring Images

Sculpted monsters, open tombs and dramatic depictions of supernatural combatants make visiting the Sacro Bosco more akin to braving a Renaissance version of a haunted house.

Discover the Mysteries of Italy's Park of Monsters, a 16th-Century Garden Filled With Strange, Colossal Stone Creatures

At the Smithsonian

The laptop that belonged to Chris Janczewski, former IRS-CI agent

A Federal Agent’s Laptop Held the Keys to Seize $3.6 Billion in Stolen Bitcoin. Here’s How It Ended Up at the Smithsonian

Soon to be on display at the National Museum of American History, the laptop is the centerpiece of a criminal case that shows an evolving understanding of cryptocurrency

Floating Clouds, Hisako Hibi, oil on canvas, 1944

Discover the Remarkable Paintings of Three Japanese Americans Whose Life Stories Are Told Through Their Work

The Island, Tuan Andrew Nguyen, single-channel video, color, 5.1 surround sound, 42 minutes, 2017

See a Film That Reimagines History on the Malaysian Island That Served as a Refugee Site After the Vietnam War