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Latest Features

Last September, an installation of almost 700,000 white flags on the National Mall paid tribute to the Americans who have died of Covid-19.

HISTORY

The Civil War Drastically Reshaped How Americans Deal With Death. Will the Pandemic?

A female saltmarsh sparrow in a New Hampshire wetland is held by University of New Hampshire graduatet student Talia Kuras. The circular device reads the transponder-containing indentification tag on the bird's leg. 

SCIENCE

Saving the Imperiled Saltmarsh Sparrow

Early efforts to sow hibiscus on the mainland had mixed success. Today it grows in many states; in the South, hibiscus used in punch is known as “Florida Cranberry.”

ARTS & CULTURE

A Brief History of Red Drink

One reader wonders why men’s bicycles have crossbars but not women’s.  

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Why Do Only Men's Bicycles Have Crossbars? And More Questions From Our Readers

The Great Hall boasts works by nearly 50 American painters and sculptors.

HISTORY

What Makes the Library of Congress a Monument to Democracy

Before the critical 1965 Supreme Court ruling Griswold v. Connecticut, state and federal morality laws prohibited access to contraceptives, even to married couples (above: a picketer protests the opening of a new Planned Parenthood Center in New Haven, Connecticut).

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

The Revolutionary 1965 Supreme Court Decision That Declared Sex a Private Affair

Olive Trees With Yellow Sky and Sun, oil on canvas, 1889. Van Gogh painted several of his most famous works while at the asylum, including his Iris series and The Starry Night.

ARTS & CULTURE

When Van Gogh Spoke for the Trees

Horses have shaped human history over millennia, just as humans have influenced their evolution

SCIENCE

When Did Humans Domesticate the Horse?

Current Issue

Smithsonian magazine April/May 2022 issue cover

Most Popular

1.

History

The Deadliest Disaster at Sea Killed Thousands, Yet Its Story Is Little-Known. Why?

In the final months of World War II, 75 years ago, German citizens and soldiers fleeing the Soviet army died when the "Wilhelm Gustloff" sank

2.

Smart News

Danish Biologists Cultivate Morel Mushrooms Year-Round With New Indoor Technique

The black morel mushrooms are grown in a climate-controlled environment that produces 20 pounds per square yard per year

3.

Smart News

Amateur Archaeologist Stumbles Onto Trove of Coins Dated to Constantine the Great's Reign

Found in Switzerland, some of the buried Roman coins were minted during a time of relative political stability, between 332 and 335 C.E.

4.

Innovation

This Teenager Found a Way to Control Mosquitoes Using Essential Oils and Baker's Yeast

Aseel Rawashdeh's inexpensive larvicide kills disease-spreading species and spares beneficial ones

5.

History

What Really Happened to Michael Rockefeller

A journey to the heart of New Guinea’s Asmat tribal homeland sheds new light on the mystery of the heir’s disappearance there in 1961

Smithsonian Voices
Your IMPACT | Your Smithsonian

Visionary Sisters Make "A Modern Museum"

Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery

This Present Moment Is Here and Now

National Museum of Natural History

Iconic Photos Give Rare Glimpse of Smithsonian's Storage Rooms

Smithsonian Center for Folklife & Cultural Heritage

The Weight of the Asian American Vote

Smithsonian Libraries and Archives

Cementing Your Home Plans in 1909

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

Secretary Lonnie Bunch Visits the 'Farthest Rock From the Sun of the Smithsonian'

See All

Special Report
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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

Why Psychedelic Drugs May Become a Key Treatment for PTSD and Depression

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

Negative Effects of Social Media May Impact Adolescent Girls and Boys at Different Ages

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

An Energetic Dog is Best Friends With an an Orphan Raccoon

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

A Vervet Monkey Befriends Some Hostile Dogs

Preview thumbnail for video 'How the Meaning of Thanksgiving Has Changed

How the Meaning of Thanksgiving Has Changed

Photo of the day

Natural bokeh effect captured on my mobile. The dragonfly is sitting calmly and silently on a branch of a tree. Natural Bokeh With a Dragonfly Resting on Tree Branch

History

Last September, an installation of almost 700,000 white flags on the National Mall paid tribute to the Americans who have died of Covid-19.

The Civil War Drastically Reshaped How Americans Deal With Death. Will the Pandemic?

Around 750,000 people died during the conflict—2.5 percent of the country's population at the time

The Clotilda has been at the bottom of the Mobile River since 1860, when the captain burned and sank the vessel that was used illegally to bring enslaved individuals from West Africa to Alabama. 

Unlocking the Secrets of the 'Clotilda,' the Last Known Slave Ship

Soldiers transported the amphorae, which were in excellent condition, to a local museum for safekeeping.

Ukrainian Soldiers Uncover Fourth-Century Urns While Digging Defense Trenches

Science

School children protest climate change outside the Scottish Parliament in 2019 as part of a worldwide demonstration.

Your Crushing Anxiety About the Climate Crisis Is Normal

A Stanford researcher shares what she’s learned about the ways climate change affects mental health and offers practical advice

Horses have shaped human history over millennia, just as humans have influenced their evolution

When Did Humans Domesticate the Horse?

Scientists are turning scientific date, like DNA sequences, into sound.

Why Scientists Are Turning Molecules Into Music

Innovation

AIM users could log on and instantly ping messages back and forth, remotely chatting with friends, colleagues and loved ones.

In the 25 Years Since Its Launch, AOL Instant Messenger Has Never Been 'Away'

While some aspects of AIM seem like relics of a different version of the internet, others remain deeply embedded in the social media landscape

Taste testers involved in a recent study preferred chocolate that shattered in their mouth.

Have Scientists Designed the Perfect Chocolate?

Aseel Rawashdeh's innovation won sixth place in this year's Regeneron Science Talent Search, the country's most prestigious and oldest science and math competition for promising young scientists in their senior year.

This Teenager Found a Way to Control Mosquitoes Using Essential Oils and Baker's Yeast

Arts & Culture

Hieronymus Bosch, The Last Judgment, circa 1515

Inside Hieronymus Bosch's Surreal Visions of Heaven and Hell

A new exhibition in Budapest features almost 90 works by the Dutch artist and his peers

Painted to inspire a sense of patriotism among 19th-century Americans, Washington Crossing the Delaware still has cultural sticking power today. 

'Washington Crossing the Delaware' Sails Toward the Auction Block—and Could Fetch $15 Million

In the ancient Roman world, sexual pleasure was a cause for celebration rather than a source of shame.

Why Was Erotic Art So Popular in Ancient Pompeii?

Travel

When access to the interior of the statue is permitted, visitiors will be able to take in the surrounding views from the glass-encased heart at Jesus' chest.

A New Statue of Jesus Is the World's Tallest—for Now

"Christ the Protector" is taller than Rio de Janeiro's most famous monument

Originally founded in 1889, the Moulin Rouge has been a Parisian landmark for more than 130 years. 

The Windmill That Gave Paris' Moulin Rouge Its Name Is Now an Airbnb—And Is Booking for Just $1

All are welcome at Papunya Tula's art centers.

Australia's Western Desert Art Movement Turns 50

At the Smithsonian

Before the critical 1965 Supreme Court ruling Griswold v. Connecticut, state and federal morality laws prohibited access to contraceptives, even to married couples (above: a picketer protests the opening of a new Planned Parenthood Center in New Haven, Connecticut).

The Revolutionary 1965 Supreme Court Decision That Declared Sex a Private Affair

A Smithsonian curator of medicine and science looks back to the days when police could arrest couples for using contraception

A new book, coedited by Smithsonian entomologist Ted Schultz, explores and the fascinating ways in which human and nonhuman farmers compare, and asks what we might learn from other agricultural species.

Could Ants, Termites and Fishes Make Humans Better Farmers?

The first-ever image of a black hole in the Milky Way

Here’s What the Black Hole in the Center of the Milky Way Looks Like