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Stories from Sarah Kuta

Researchers used remotely operated underwater vehicles to explore the wreckage.

Historic Century-Old Shipwreck Discovered 600 Feet Beneath the Surface of Lake Superior

The 300-foot “Western Reserve” sank in August 1892, killing 27 people after both lifeboats capsized. Harry W. Stewart, the ship’s wheelsman, was the only survivor

The slab was donated to an Australian high school by a geologist who discovered it at a nearby coal mine.

Students Walked Past This Rock for 20 Years. It Turned Out to Host 66 Dinosaur Footprints From the Jurassic Period

A paleontologist studied the 200-million-year-old prints that had been hiding in plain sight, then discovered even more tracks in another rock sitting in a nearby parking lot

Scientists are investigating how Adélie penguin colonies along the coast of Antarctica’s Ross Sea have adapted over the last 6,000 years.

Scientists Uncover a Frozen History in 6,000 Years’ Worth of Penguin Poop, Revealing Past Ecology on Antarctica

Sediment samples from the Ross Sea coastline are revealing insights into how animals like elephant seals and Adélie penguins adapted to environmental changes long ago

This illustration shows the two kinds of travois researchers think humans used while moving heavy goods in New Mexico.

These Tracks Reveal Evidence of 22,000-Year-Old Wheelbarrows—But Without the Wheels

The drag marks and footprints were discovered in present-day New Mexico. Researchers say they’re some of the earliest known examples of transport vehicles

One of the toilets featured a granite slab with a hole in it and two stepping stones on either side.

Archaeologists Unearth 1,300-Year-Old Flush Toilets at a Palace Complex in South Korea

One of the toilets, likely used by the crown prince and his court ladies, may have drained directly into a nearby river

When they're alarmed, blue-lined octopuses display iridescent blue rings on their arms to ward off approaching predators.

These Male Octopuses Use Venom to Subdue Female Mates—and Avoid Being Eaten After Sex

Scientists observed male blue-lined octopuses injecting tetrodotoxin into females, which rendered them immobile for mating

Scientists used fragments of the child's right forearm bone to date the skeletal remains.

Mysterious Skeleton of Child With Human and Neanderthal Traits Has Finally Been Dated by Archaeologists

Discovered in Portugal in 1998, the individual dubbed the “Lapedo Child” has long perplexed scientists, thanks to a curious mix of features

The red represents the legal tape used to bind papers, while the gray represents victims' ashes.

See the New Tartan Pattern Created to Honor Women Accused of Witchcraft in Scotland Between 1563 and 1736

The black, red, gray and pink design honors the thousands of individuals—mostly women—who were persecuted under the Scottish Witchcraft Act

Surgeons operated on three patients in Canada.

Surgeons Are Conducting Rare ‘Tooth-in-Eye’ Surgeries to Restore Vision to Blind Patients in Canada

The complex procedure involves extracting a patient’s canine tooth, adding a plastic optical lens to it and surgically embedding it in the eye

Fumika Fujibuchi, an official adjudicator for Guinness World Records, certified the park in late February.

See the World’s Smallest Park, a Teeny-Tiny Enclave in Japan That’s About the Size of Four Sheets of Paper

The record-breaking park features some grass, a seat and a decorative stepping stone. It’s even smaller than Mill Ends Park in Portland, Oregon, which had held the title since 1971

In one nest, researchers found a McDonald's McChicken container from 1996.

These Bird Nests Are Full of Trash, Including Some That’s 30 Years Old

Scientists studying Eurasian coots in Amsterdam found layers of decades-old garbage in their urban nests

Stone tools suggest humans lived in a tropical rainforest in present-day Ivory Coast roughly 150,000 years ago.

Humans May Have Lived in Tropical Rainforests Much Earlier Than Scientists Previously Thought, Study Finds

New research suggests that humans inhabited the rainforests of West Africa roughly 150,000 years ago, providing new insights into our ancestors’ ability to adapt to challenging environments

Greenland sharks can live to be nearly 400 years old.

Greenland Sharks Can Live for 400 Years. Scientists Are Using DNA to Unravel Their Longevity Secrets

These large, mysterious creatures are the longest-living vertebrates on the planet—and their genomes could contain clues to how they prevent cancer and reach such an advanced age

An artist's illustration of the London Tunnels, a planned tourist attraction in a World War II-era labyrinth beneath central London

Plans Are Taking Shape for an Extravagant New Tourist Attraction Inside London’s World War II-Era Tunnels

The 86,000-square-foot labyrinth was built in the 1940s during the London Blitz. Now, workers are transforming it into a museum, memorial, art gallery and bar

The mice were genetically engineered to have mammoth-like traits, such as thick, fluffy hair.

Biotech Company Creates ‘Woolly Mouse’ as a Step in Its Quest to Resurrect Woolly Mammoths Through Gene Editing

Colossal Biosciences leaders say the fluffy, golden-haired mice help validate their technique to “de-extinct” species, but outside scientists remain skeptical

Barrington Scott, shown here diving in Malta, traveled to all seven continents to scube dive between November 13 and December 3, 2024.

This Man Just Set a New World Record for Scuba Diving in All Seven Continents

Barrington Scott began his 27,000-mile quest in Australia and completed it in Antarctica. The journey took him 19 days, 19 hours and 40 minutes

Migrating sandhill cranes stop to rest and refuel in the Midwest as they make the long journey northward to their breeding grounds.

More Than 1,500 Sandhill Cranes Killed by Bird Flu in Indiana, Raising Concerns Among Biologists

The tall, slender grey birds are making their annual spring migration to northern breeding grounds. Experts say the virus could become a larger problem if it gets passed to endangered whooping cranes

Herbert G. Tennyson was a 24-year-old first lieutenant in the U.S. Army when he was killed during World War II.

Remains of Bomber Pilot Identified 80 Years After His Plane Went Down During World War II

Herbert G. Tennyson was a U.S. Army pilot on a B-24 nicknamed “Heaven Can Wait,” which crashed into the ocean in early 1944

In October 2024, scientists created dozens of man-made nests and deposited 300,000 Chinook salmon eggs. Now, those eggs are hatching.

Chinook Salmon Are Swimming in This California River for the First Time in More Than 80 Years

The juvenile fish recently hatched from eggs that scientists deposited in the gravelly riverbed of the North Yuba River last fall

Mother polar bears spend months inside snowy dens with their cubs. Then, the family emerges together in the spring.

Rare Footage Shows Baby Polar Bears Emerging From Their Den in the Arctic

In a new study, researchers used remote cameras and data from GPS tracking collars to learn more about this vulnerable period in the early lives of these marine mammals

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