Smithsonian Magazine: Explore History, Science, Arts & Culture

480 Otis, a beloved brown bear made popular by the Explore.org bear cams of Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve, hunts for salmon at a popular bear fishing spot known as “the jacuzzi” on July 20, 2014.

The Chonky Superstar of Fat Bear Week Is Missing, and the Competition Won't Be the Same Without Him

While other bears battled over fish in a prime spot, Otis would sit off to the side and wait for the fish to come to him. But so far this year, he hasn’t been spotted in Katmai National Park and Preserve

Pablo Picasso was a frequent visitor on the island of Capri, where the painting was discovered.

A Junk Dealer Discovered a 'Horrible' Painting in a Cellar 60 Years Ago. It Might Be a $6.6 Million Picasso

Smart News

The Discovery of a 5,000-Year-Old Society in Morocco Reveals an Ancient Farming Culture

October 3, 2024 4:07 p.m.

Montana Rancher Who Created Giant, Hybrid Sheep Sentenced to Six Months in Prison

October 3, 2024 3:30 p.m.

This Newly Discovered Sunken Warship Served on Both Sides of World War II

October 3, 2024 1:54 p.m.

Breast Cancer Cases Are Rising Among Younger Women, Report Finds

October 3, 2024 1:53 p.m.

Astronomers Discover a Small Exoplanet That's Our Cosmic Neighbor at Just Six Light-Years Away

October 3, 2024 11:33 a.m.

A Junk Dealer Discovered a 'Horrible' Painting in a Cellar 60 Years Ago. It Might Be a $6.6 Million Picasso

October 3, 2024 8:00 a.m.

Latest Features

John Kunst (left), Ambassador Robert Neumann (center) and David Kunst (right) in Kabul, Afghanistan, on September 30, 1972

Why a Minnesota Man Walked Around the World, Traversing 13 Countries and 14,450 Miles in Four Years

October 4, 2024 5:15 a.m.

A worker of the fungus-farming ant species Mycetophylax asper, collected in Santa Catarina, Brazil, in 2014, on its fungus garden

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Ants Farmed Fungi in the Wake of Dinosaurs’ Demise 66 Million Years Ago

October 3, 2024 2:04 p.m.

480 Otis, a beloved brown bear made popular by the Explore.org bear cams of Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve, hunts for salmon at a popular bear fishing spot known as “the jacuzzi” on July 20, 2014.

The Chonky Superstar of Fat Bear Week Is Missing, and the Competition Won't Be the Same Without Him

October 3, 2024 8:00 a.m.

Agafia Lykova was born while her family was living alone in the wilderness. She is the only surviving member of the family.

This Russian Family Lived Alone in the Siberian Wilderness for 40 Years, Unaware of World War II or the Moon Landing

Updated: October 2, 2024 | Originally Published: January 28, 2013

Scientists observed two bowhead whales synchronizing dive schedules whenever they were within earshot of each other.

How Did Two Bowhead Whales That Were 60 Miles Apart Sync Their Diving?

October 2, 2024

Massive columns and karst formations decorate the vast chamber of Cenote Xulo.

Divers in Mexico's Underwater Caves Get a Glimpse of Rarely Seen Artifacts, Fossils and Human Remains

October 1, 2024

A wildfire burns in Quebec, Canada, in June of last year. Smoke from the fires drifted south to the United States.

Is Wildfire Smoke Causing Birds to Tend to Empty Nests?

September 30, 2024

An aerial view of Disneyland in Anaheim, California, circa 1955

Inside Disney's Controversial Plan to Open a Theme Park Inspired by American History

September 30, 2024

Current Issue
September/October 2024

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Most Popular

1.

Divers in Mexico's Underwater Caves Get a Glimpse of Rarely Seen Artifacts, Fossils and Human Remains

Cenotes in the Yucatán Peninsula are time capsules preserving remnants of Maya culture and fossils of extinct megafauna

2.

Students Stumble Upon a Message in a Bottle Written by a French Archaeologist 200 Years Ago

The mysterious missive was written by P.J. Féret, who conducted an archaeological dig at the same site in northern France in 1825

3.

This Russian Family Lived Alone in the Siberian Wilderness for 40 Years, Unaware of World War II or the Moon Landing

In 1978, Soviet geologists stumbled upon a family of five in the taiga. They had been cut off from almost all human contact since fleeing religious persecution in 1936

4.

The Chonky Superstar of Fat Bear Week Is Missing, and the Competition Won't Be the Same Without Him

While other bears battled over fish in a prime spot, Otis would sit off to the side and wait for the fish to come to him. But so far this year, he hasn’t been spotted in Katmai National Park and Preserve

5.

Inside Disney's Controversial Plan to Open a Theme Park Inspired by American History

In the early 1990s, historians and the public alike questioned how Disney's America would accurately and sensitively document the nation's thorny past

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

Mushroom Rock, the best known of the Tsingy rocks made of petrified coral that form many small islands off the northwest coast of Madagascar.

History

Agafia Lykova was born while her family was living alone in the wilderness. She is the only surviving member of the family.

This Russian Family Lived Alone in the Siberian Wilderness for 40 Years, Unaware of World War II or the Moon Landing

In 1978, Soviet geologists stumbled upon a family of five in the taiga. They had been cut off from almost all human contact since fleeing religious persecution in 1936

A wall painting of a crowned woman with scepter (upper left), a procession of men behind her carrying objects (upper right) and a textile workshop (below)

See a Newly Uncovered Throne Room in Peru That May Have Belonged to an Ancient Queen

An aerial view of Disneyland in Anaheim, California, circa 1955

Inside Disney's Controversial Plan to Open a Theme Park Inspired by American History

Science

A wildfire burns in Quebec, Canada, in June of last year. Smoke from the fires drifted south to the United States.

Is Wildfire Smoke Causing Birds to Tend to Empty Nests?

New studies suggest smoke from western megafires may be damaging bird health and leading to strange behavior

The Milky Way lights up a night sky accented by the bright stars of the “summer triangle.”

How to Find the Ten Brightest Stars in the Night Sky

Jellyfish are among the planet’s simplest creatures, made up of about 95 percent water and lacking brains, spines, blood or hearts.

Delight in These 15 Photos That Capture the Exotic Undersea Lives of Jellyfish

Innovation

Some artificial intelligence models have predicted where hurricanes would make landfall earlier than numerical weather models.

Just How Much Can We Trust A.I. to Predict Extreme Weather?

Computer scientist and meteorologist Amy McGovern has studied the technology for two decades, and she weighs in with some answers

The first wind phone was built in 2010 in Otsuchi, Japan.

What Are Wind Phones, and How Do They Help With Grief?

A cross section of a chambered nautilus shell shows the newly defined shape, the "soft cell," repeating outward in a spiral.

Mathematicians Discover a New Class of Shape: the 'Soft Cell'

Arts & Culture

A self-portrait taken in New York by Vivian Maier in 1954

Meet Vivian Maier, the Reclusive Nanny Who Secretly Became One of the Best Street Photographers of the 20th Century

The self-taught artist is getting her first museum exhibition in New York City, where she nurtured her nascent interest in photography

The Museum of Perfume, presented by Paris’ Fragonard Perfumery, is dedicated to exploring the methodology and history behind perfume making.

Museums in Paris That Surprise and Delight, From Medical History to Magic to Marie Curie

The weapons are adorned with gold and silver designs and an engraved image of Napoleon.

Napoleon's Elaborately Decorated Pistols Sell for $1.8 Million at Auction

Travel

Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz eloped in 1940. Eleven years later, “I Love Lucy” premiered on CBS, and they would become one of the most iconic couples for decades to follow.

Desi Arnaz Is Getting a Much-Deserved Historical Marker in Miami Beach

The Cuban-American actor and producer has stars on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame, but this new honor pays tribute to his start as a musician in South Florida

A Margherita pie from Una Pizza Napoletana

The World's Best Pizza Is in New York City, According to Italy-Based Rankings

Fossil teeth are quite abundant in Southwest Florida.

Four Places to Find Fossilized Shark Teeth in the United States

At the Smithsonian

1980, OSGEMEOS, mixed media with sequins on MDF, 2020

The Colorful World of These Brazilian Identical Twins Bridges Dreams and Reality

The artists known as OSGEMEOS showcase the largest exhibition of their work in the United States at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

Blossom Time, Willard Metcalf, oil on canvas, 1910

How Century-Old Paintings Reveal the Indigenous Roots and Natural History of New England Landscapes

Bokmakierie's nest and eggs from the collection of the Natural History Museum at Tring

See the Wonders of Bird Engineering in These Photos of Intricate Nests