Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Stories from Elizabeth Gamillo

Archeologists have found that the Ohio Hopewell collected the meteorites and forged jewelry and pan flutes out of them. Other astonishing evidence that ties in the comet include a comet-shaped earthwork called Milford Earthworks that the Hopewell people constructed near the airburst's epicenter.

Scientists Find ‘Chemical Fingerprint’ of Comet Airburst That May Have Ignited the Decline of Hopewell Culture

Many Indigenous groups documented the cosmic event with oral histories and other records, including earthworks

Although Jonathan is now blind and has lost his sense of smell, he continues to engage in his favorite pastimes: sun-bathing, sleeping, eating, and mating.

At 190, Jonathan the Tortoise Is the World’s Oldest

He will likely celebrate with some of his favorite activities: sunbathing, sleeping, eating, and mating

More than 200 preserved footprints trek across the canyon's limestone surface and give clues about what life was like millions of years ago.

Construction Trucks May Have Damaged 112-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Tracks at Mill Canyon in Utah

Nearly 30 percent of the site’s irreplaceable paleontological resources may have been impacted

The celestial bodies are known as NGC 7764A and reside in the Phoenix constellation 425 million light-years away from Earth.

Hubble Space Telescope Snaps Stunning Photo of a Faraway Galactic Trio

Some of the galaxies in the image resemble Star Trek’s Starship Enterprise

Warmer winters and shrinking snow depths have made it easier for white-tailed deer to migrate further north.

Wolves Keep Brain Worm–Spreading Deer Away From Moose Populations in Minnesota

Wildlife managers now face the challenge of creating conservation plans for all three species while maintaining balance between predator and prey animals

Big brown bats Eptesicus fuscus (pictured) are a Yangochiroptera species that uses complex sounds to echolocate. 

A Tiny, Partially Missing Bone Structure in Bat Ears May Have Cleared the Way for Echolocation to Evolve

Nearly 90 percent of the nighttime hunters use sound to find prey

An adult chimera crab was about the size of a quarter with big eyes that took up about 16 percent of its size. Pictured: An artist's rendition of what the crab may have looked like.

This Tiny, Googly-Eyed Prehistoric Crab Was a Fast-Swimming Predator With Sharp Vision

The 95-million-year-old crab had crystal clear eyesight and oar-like legs that helped it snatch up prey

The monkeys escaped into a wooded area where state troopers and state wildlife officials launched a search effort that included the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Pennsylvania Department of Health officials.

All Animals Are Accounted for After Truck Carrying 100 Lab Monkeys Crashed in Pennsylvania

Only three monkeys escaped during the accident, all of which were successfully recaptured

The oil slick in the ocean extended an area of over 320 football fields and has dirtied waters and beaches, resulting in many dead birds and seals washing up onshore.
 

Tsunami-Triggered Oil Spill Devastates Marine Wildlife on Peru’s Coast After Volcanic Eruption in Tonga

The country declared a 90-day environmental emergency after 264,000 gallons of crude oil contaminated a biodiverse swath of its coastal ecosystems

Mammal and bird losses cut a plant’s ability to adapt to global climate change by 60 percent. Pictured: Cedar waxwing

With Fewer Animals to Move Their Seeds, Plants Are Stuck in Threatened Habitats

For many types of vegetation, the only way to migrate to a more favorable range is through the guts of mammals and birds

With Omicron’s high transmissibility and record number of infections, public health experts encourage the use of high-quality masks to prevent spreading the airborne virus.

Biden Administration Plans to Provide 400 Million N95 Masks to Americans Amid Omicron Surge

Starting next week, adults can pick up three free masks each at pharmacies, community centers and vaccination sites

The T. rex specimen was discovered in 1987 by fossil hunter Stan Sacrison in South Dakota's Badlands.
 

Dinosaur Fan Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Is Not Stan the T. Rex’s Mystery Buyer

A cast of the prehistoric giant made a guest appearance from the actor’s home office on ESPN’s ManningCast

The elite used the highly-prized, donkey-like creatures for travel and warfare.

This Ancient Wild Ass Was the Earliest Known Animal Hybrid Bred by Humans

Called a kunga, the donkey-like creature may have been considered a status symbol about 4,500 years ago

Researchers examined 24 Martian sediment samples collected from six exposed locations in the Gale Crater that contained mudstones of an ancient lake.

‘Intriguing’ Carbon Isotopes on Mars Could Be From Cosmic Dust, UV Radiation or Ancient Life

NASA scientists compared the data to chemical signatures of biological processes on Earth and found some similarities to billion-year-old microbes

Using data and data visualization software that mapped the asymmetrical bubble, the research team calculated that at least 15 supernovae have gone off over millions of years and pushed gas outward, creating a bubble where seven star-forming regions dot the surface.
 

A Star-Producing, Cosmic Bubble Shrouds Our Solar System

Researchers created a 3-D model of Earth’s galactic neighborhood

In the last two decades, cases of Lyme disease in the U.S. have tripled. In one year, 476,000 individuals come down with flu-like symptoms accompanied by a distinct bulls-eye rash.

Lyme-Spreading Ticks May Thrive in Warmer Winter Conditions Across North America

In a new study, insects carrying the disease were more likely to survive cold or fluctuating temperatures than their uninfected peers

Reseachers observed sodium atoms breaking up into crystal particles that resemble tornado-like structures after entering a quantum state.

MIT Physicists Formed Quantum Tornadoes by Spinning Ultra-Cold Atoms

The experiment documented what happens when atoms cross from classical physics to quantum behaviors

With more reports on the rise, doctors and public health experts are emphasizing that vaccines against covid-19 and influenza are the best way to protect against cases of severe infection.
 

What Is ‘Flurona’? Cases of Co-Infections Increase Amid Peak Influenza Season and Omicron Variant Surge

In the United States, most infections are being reported in young children and teens

China's Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST), also known as the Chinese Artifical Sun, has operated since 2006.

China’s Artificial Sun Just Broke a Record for Longest Sustained Nuclear Fusion

Superheated plasma reached 126 million degrees Fahrenheit for 17 minutes

The fish's movements, orientation, and location in the tank were translated into instructions for the wheels of the vehicle. The fish moves the car forward, backward, left and right.

Watch This Goldfish Drive an Aquarium on Wheels

The car was designed to move depending on the fish’s location in its tank, showing animals can understand how to navigate foreign environments

Page 7 of 19