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Latest Features

Pages from Plastic Surgery of the Face by Harold Gillies

HISTORY

Inside a Trailblazing Surgeon's Quest to Reconstruct WWI Soldiers' Disfigured Faces

The new Smithsonian show examines the foundational contributions of Latinos in shaping the history and culture of the United States. 

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

You Can Now Preview the Upcoming Latino Museum

Researchers at Northwestern University created an implantable device that attaches to a nerve to deliver pain relief.

INNOVATION

This Dissolvable Implant Could Revolutionize Pain Management

In their dissent, the court's three liberal judges wrote that their fellow justices had stripped the EPA of “the power to respond to the most pressing environmental challenge of our time.”

SCIENCE

How the Clean Air Act Came to Be

The yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti, spreads dengue fever, Zika, chikungunya and other viruses that infect humans.

SCIENCE

Dengue Fever and Zika Virus Make Humans More Attractive to Mosquitoes

Communist revolutionary Rosa Luxemburg speaking at a conference in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1907

HISTORY

The 20th-Century History of Anti-Semitic Attacks on Jewish Politicians

More than 10,000 mental health apps are available, according to one estimate. In order to pick the most reliable ones, researchers say you should consider their privacy policies, effectiveness, and costs.

SCIENCE

Can a Mental Health App Help You Deal With Anxiety?

Gilliam, 88, died June 25 in his studio, just miles from the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, which recently opened a captivating new show, “Sam Gilliam: Full Circle.”

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Abstractionist Sam Gilliam Dies at 88, Hirshhorn Hosts His Final Show

Current Issue

Smithsonian magazine June 2022 issue cover

Most Popular

1.

Smart News

An Ancient Home Found Beneath the Baths of Caracalla Is Now on Display

The second-century structure has frescoed ceilings and depictions of both Roman and Egyptian deities

2.

Smart News

Flowers Sweeten Up When They Sense Bees Buzzing

A new study suggests plants can 'hear' the humming of nearby pollinators and increase their sugar content in response

3.

Smart News

Climate Activists Glue Themselves to Van Gogh Painting in London

The protesters hope to combat political inaction in the face of the climate crisis

4.

History

Colonel Parker Managed Elvis’ Career, but Was He a Killer on the Lam?

The man who brought The King to global fame kept his own past secret. But what exactly was Tom Parker hiding?

5.

Science

Why Fireworks Scare Some Dogs but Not Others

Canine scientists investigate why loud sounds cause some dogs to lose their cool and offer insight on effective treatment

Smithsonian Voices
National Portrait Gallery

“Family Ties: Daguerreotype Portraits” and “Powerful Partnerships: Civil War-Era Couples”

National Museum of Natural History

Meet the scientist who studies how polychaete worms wriggle through the ocean

Earth Optimism

The Rise of the American Conservation Movement: Power, Privilege, and Environmental Protection | Earth Optimism Book of the Month

Archives of American Art

New Collections: Emanuel Martínez Papers

Smithsonian Latino Center

Girlhood in Latina/o/x Children’s and Young Adult Literature

Earth Optimism

Sustaining a Green Business

See All

Special Report
None

The Future of Mental Health

As the isolation and anxiety caused by the pandemic put a renewed focus on our brain's ability to cope with trauma, Smithsonian magazine brings you stories about the latest advancements in treatments and understanding of mental illness

View Full Report

Beginning in Mid-July, Dial 988 for the Mental Health Hotline

Should Parents Worry About New Research Linking Kids’ Mental Health and Individual Sports?

Kids as Young as Eight Years Old Should Be Screened for Anxiety, Task Force Says

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Smithsonian Channel

Preview thumbnail for video 'You’re Not Ready for How Playful Komodo Dragons Can Be

You’re Not Ready for How Playful Komodo Dragons Can Be

Play
Preview thumbnail for video 'An Energetic Dog Is Best Friends With an Orphan Raccoon

An Energetic Dog Is Best Friends With an Orphan Raccoon

Preview thumbnail for video 'A Vervet Monkey Befriends Some Hostile Dogs

A Vervet Monkey Befriends Some Hostile Dogs

Photo of the day

An eagle flies off in triumph after plucking a fish from the Susquehanna River at the Conowingo Dam in Maryland. After The Catch

History

Pages from Plastic Surgery of the Face by Harold Gillies

Inside a Trailblazing Surgeon's Quest to Reconstruct WWI Soldiers' Disfigured Faces

A new book profiles Harold Gillies, whose efforts to restore wounded warriors' visages laid the groundwork for modern plastic surgery

Communist revolutionary Rosa Luxemburg speaking at a conference in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1907

The 20th-Century History of Anti-Semitic Attacks on Jewish Politicians

Archaeologists continue to dig around the Roman temple complex in the Netherlands.

In the Netherlands, Volunteer Archaeologists Find Roman Temple Complex

Science

More than 10,000 mental health apps are available, according to one estimate. In order to pick the most reliable ones, researchers say you should consider their privacy policies, effectiveness, and costs.

Can a Mental Health App Help You Deal With Anxiety?

Experts say the aids can be a first step to meaningful treatment if you choose an app based on three criteria

Glowing green waters surrounded a boat in the Arabian Sea.

What Causes Swaths of the Ocean to Glow a Magnificent Milky Green?

A skeleton of the giant Triassic ichthyosaur Shonisaurus popularis hangs in the Nevada State Museum.

Whale-Sized Marine Reptiles Once Ruled the Seas

Innovation

Royal kombu (aka sugar kelp) harvested from the Netherlands’ first organic seaweed farm enriches and flavors the Dutch Weed Burger’s soy-chip-based patty.

Is Seaweed the Next Big Alternative to Meat?

From kelp burgers to bacon of the sea, sustainable food entrepreneurs are innovating to charm hungry omnivores

Previously other companies have used 3D printing technology to produce custom prosthetic limbs from lightweight plastics and materials. Still, the ear implant is the first known example of a 3D implant made from living tissue.

Surgeons Transplant 3-D-Printed Ear Made From Patient’s Own Cells

Scientists assessed changes in the gut microbiome of superworms (Zophobas morio) in a new study.

Polystyrene-Eating 'Superworms' May Provide Clues for Better Recycling

Arts & Culture

In “EmilyBlaster,” the gameplay is shooting at words to form Emily Dickinson poems.

You Can Now Play 'EmilyBlaster,' a Video Game Inspired by Emily Dickinson's Poetry

Players assemble poems by shooting at words in the '80s-style adventure

Austin Butler as Elvis in the new biopic

The True History Behind Baz Luhrmann's 'Elvis'

Anna Weyant’s Josephine, which sold more than $500,000 at a Sotheby’s Hong Kong auction

After Finding Fame on Instagram, Anna Weyant's Art Now Sells for Millions

Travel

The new Resnick Center for Herbert Bayer Studies in Aspen

How Bauhaus Artist Herbert Bayer Helped Put Aspen on the Map

The Colorado town is home to a new center dedicated to the artistic polymath's legacy

An octopus, sea star, bivalves and dozens of cup coral all share the same overhang in an area adjacent to the Hudson Canyon off the coast of New York and New Jersey.

This Underwater Canyon Could Become America's Newest Marine Sanctuary

Located alongside New Jersey’s southernmost point, Cape May is a stunning Victorian shore community that once played a role in guiding Black enslaved laborers to freedom.

The 15 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2022

At the Smithsonian

The "Gifts We Carry: Sounds of Migration and Memory” concert will combine musicians from several backgrounds and cultures, including Salar Nader on the tabla and Homayoun Sakhi, a master on the Afghan stringed instrument the rubab. 

After Long Absence, the Folklife Festival Returns to the National Mall

The much-loved summer event, featuring the United Arab Emirates and Earth Optimism programs, opens with a concert hosted by Yo-Yo Ma

Gilliam, 88, died June 25 in his studio, just miles from the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, which recently opened a captivating new show, “Sam Gilliam: Full Circle.”

Abstractionist Sam Gilliam Dies at 88, Hirshhorn Hosts His Final Show

The single-engine, single-seat Turner RT-14 Meteor is the "epitome of what a 1930s air racer in the United States would be: big engine, big propeller, small profile,” says the museum's Jeremy Kinney.

The Record-Shattering Airplane Behind a Dashing Pilot’s Meteoric Rise to Fame