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Latest Features

“When an individual walks through this experience, they are a part of history, and now they can contribute to the future,” says the museum's Asantewa Boakyewa.

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

This Show Is Everything You Need for a Year of Meaningful Community Activism

Neal V. Loving in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1954

HISTORY

In 1946, a Black Pilot Returned to the Cockpit After a Double Amputation

Pueblo Bonito, a massive stone great house in Chaco Canyon in New Mexico

SCIENCE

How Should Scientists Navigate the Ethics of Ancient Human DNA Research?

Pablo Picasso in 1971

TRAVEL

Follow Pablo Picasso's Footsteps Through Spain

At the Paris World's Fair a powerful display of hand-drawn diagrams (above: Income and expenditure of 150 Negro families in Atlanta, Ga.,U.S. designed by W.E.B. Du Bois and his students) called attention to the unrecognized contributions of Black Americans. The fragile posters are being rotatated in and out of an exhibition at the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum through May 2023.

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

How W.E.B. Du Bois Disrupted America’s Dominance at the World’s Fair

Large felids such as lions and tigers cause more deaths than other predators like bears and wolves. Most fatal felid attacks occur in low-income areas and are predatory, with humans stalked as prey.

SCIENCE

What 70 Years of Data Says About Where Predators Kill Humans

The cast of the 1983 film, from left to right: Patrick Swayze, Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, C. Thomas Howell, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez and Tom Cruise

ARTS & CULTURE

S.E. Hinton Is Tired of Talking About 'The Outsiders.' No One Else Is

A meteor streaks across the sky near Lone Pine, California, during the annual Perseid meteor shower in 2022.

SCIENCE

Ten Dazzling Celestial Events to See in 2023

Current Issue

Smithsonian magazine January/February 2023 issue cover

Most Popular

1.

History

In 1945, a Japanese Balloon Bomb Killed Six Americans, Five of Them Children, in Oregon

The military kept the true story of their deaths, the only civilians to die at enemy hands on the U.S. mainland, under wraps

2.

Smart News

Archaeologists Unearth Oldest Known Gold-Covered Mummy in Egypt

The year-long excavation has also revealed statues, tools, pottery and dozens of other artifacts

3.

Smart News

Scientists Have Created a New Type of Ice

It looks like a white powder and has nearly the same density as liquid water

4.

Smart News

5,000-Year-Old Tavern With Food Still Inside Discovered in Iraq

Archaeologists found benches, an oven and food remnants dating back to 2700 B.C.E.

5.

Smart News

Hundreds of Frank Lloyd Wright's Designs Were Never Built. Here's What They Might Have Looked Like

So far, David Romero has digitally reconstructed over 20 of the famous architect's unrealized projects

Smithsonian Voices
Smithsonian Associates

Summer Camps Offer Kids Opportunities to Connect with the Smithsonian’s Museums and Research

National Museum of Natural History

Smithsonian Scientists Unearth Signs of an Ancient Climate Calamity Buried Beneath the Seafloor

Smithsonian Libraries and Archives

Find Organization Inspiration in Old-Fashioned Filing Systems

Office of Academic Appointments and Internships

Bouncing Back in a Warming World

Smithsonian Associates

Rick Steves on Eating in Italy and More Programs in February

Earth Optimism

Bunnies, Bears and Other Stories to Beat the January Blues

See All

Special Report
None

Alaska

Alaska is nicknamed "The Great Land," and for good reason: it is wild, rugged and expansive. In a series of articles, Smithsonian magazine explores the history, culture and natural wonders of the 49th state.

View Full Report

Featured Stories

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

Getting Up Close to the Bears of Alaska's Lake Clark National Park

A Small Town in Alaska Is Home to the World's First Hammer Museum

Made Possible Through the Support of Travel Alaska Logo-CMYK_Large_transp.png
  image   image

Smithsonian Channel

Preview thumbnail for video 'Drones Now Play an Active Role in Sea Turtle Census

Drones Now Play an Active Role in Sea Turtle Census

Play
Preview thumbnail for video 'A Single Male Lemur Stands Up to a Entire Troop of Invaders

A Single Male Lemur Stands Up to a Entire Troop of Invaders

Preview thumbnail for video 'The Dam Buster Bombers Set Their Sights on Hitler’s Last Battleship|

The Dam Buster Bombers Set Their Sights on Hitler’s Last Battleship|

Photo of the day

Chefchaouen is a city in northern Morocco, highlighted by its white-washed and blue painted buildings. I saw this woman walking down the steps of an alley while visiting the town, and I was awe-struck by the contrast between her colorful outfit and the blue walls. Beautiful Colors

History

Neal V. Loving in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1954

In 1946, a Black Pilot Returned to the Cockpit After a Double Amputation

Neal V. Loving, whose memoir will soon be released by Smithsonian Books, built his own planes, ran a flight school and conducted research for the Air Force

The gold pendant likely dates to around 1521.

Metal Detectorist Discovers Rare Gold Pendant Celebrating Henry VIII's First Marriage

“People always liked and admired Colette, but after [World War I], with this need to consolidate French identity, Colette really becomes a classique,” says Kathleen Antonioli. 

Colette Revolutionized French Literature With Her Depictions of Female Desire

Science

Large felids such as lions and tigers cause more deaths than other predators like bears and wolves. Most fatal felid attacks occur in low-income areas and are predatory, with humans stalked as prey.

What 70 Years of Data Says About Where Predators Kill Humans

A new survey of attacks by lions, wolves and other big carnivores shows that people in low-income countries are at greater risk

A meteor streaks across the sky near Lone Pine, California, during the annual Perseid meteor shower in 2022.

Ten Dazzling Celestial Events to See in 2023

Blood donations have dropped around the United States during the Covid-19 pandemic.

More Gay and Bisexual Men Could Soon Donate Blood

Innovation

Fall/Winter Sears catalog from 1957

Before Folding 30 Years Ago, the Sears Catalog Sold Some Surprising Products

The retail giant’s mail-order business reigned supreme for more than a century, offering everything from quack cures to ready-to-build homes

Researchers have been studying the 37-inch-long de Brécy Tondo for decades.

Artificial Intelligence Identifies Long-Overlooked Raphael Masterpiece

Debra Babalola and Shefali Bohra invented Dotplot, a device that can help users monitor their breast health.

A New Tool Could Help Detect Breast Cancer Earlier

Arts & Culture

The cast of the 1983 film, from left to right: Patrick Swayze, Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, C. Thomas Howell, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez and Tom Cruise

S.E. Hinton Is Tired of Talking About 'The Outsiders.' No One Else Is

The author reflects on her classic 1967 novel, its 1983 film adaptation and its legacy today

The New York Public Library has acquired the papers of the late literary couple Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne.

New York Public Library Acquires Joan Didion's Letters, Drafts and Notes

McCartney took the images on a 35-millimeter camera in New York, Washington, London, Liverpool, Miami and Paris.

Never-Before-Seen Photos by Paul McCartney Take You Inside Beatlemania

Travel

Havasu Falls in Arizona

Havasu Falls Is Reopening After Three Years

Travelers whose reservations were canceled during the pandemic are first in line

About 100 miles northwest of Mexico City in the UNESCO-designated Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, up to a billion of the brilliant-winged insects spend November to March clustered on branches.

A Ring of Fire, Millions of Monarchs and Other Rare Natural Phenomena Worth Traveling For

The stunning Sydney Modern Project is the modern leg of the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Australia.

The Most Anticipated Museum Openings of 2023

At the Smithsonian

“When an individual walks through this experience, they are a part of history, and now they can contribute to the future,” says the museum's Asantewa Boakyewa.

This Show Is Everything You Need for a Year of Meaningful Community Activism

The immersive exhibition, "The Utopia Project," at the Anacostia Community Museum is about setting high goals and the means for achieving them

At the Paris World's Fair a powerful display of hand-drawn diagrams (above: Income and expenditure of 150 Negro families in Atlanta, Ga.,U.S. designed by W.E.B. Du Bois and his students) called attention to the unrecognized contributions of Black Americans. The fragile posters are being rotatated in and out of an exhibition at the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum through May 2023.

How W.E.B. Du Bois Disrupted America’s Dominance at the World’s Fair

Neal V. Loving in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1954

In 1946, a Black Pilot Returned to the Cockpit After a Double Amputation