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National Museum of Natural History

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Our Planet On the Big Screen: New Museum Exhibition Explores Ever-Changing Earth from Space and on the Ground

The Smithsonian partners with NASA to present the Earth Information Center, a larger-than-life display that visualizes interconnected changes on the planet

Rising atmospheric carbon dioxide is causing global warming. This means glaciers in Antarctica are melting. Those same glaciers were originally made when carbon dioxide dropped 34 million years ago. (NASA/Jim Ross)

Drop in Greenhouse Gas Caused Global Cooling 34 Million Years Ago, Study Finds

The findings confirm that carbon dioxide plays a significant role in any climate change.

Coral reef health is an important indicator of the ocean’s well-being. Scientists can study corals to learn more about how climate change is affecting the oceans. (Wise Hok Wai Lum, CC-BY-SA-4.0)

DNA Makes Waves in the Fight to Save Coral Reefs

Environmental DNA could help scientists understand and anticipate the threats coral reefs face.

The original photos from late 1800s by famous snowflake photographer Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley, are stored in the Smithsonian Archives. His pictures were instrumental in helping scientists examine snow’s crystalline properties. (Erin Malsbury, Smithsonian Open Access, Wilson A. Bentley)

Why Scientists Find Snowflakes Cool

Mineralogists study snowflakes to learn more about how water in its solid phase behaves.

Plants and animals around the globe use a wide variety of evolutionary strategies to survive harsh winters.

How Seven of Nature’s Coolest Species Weather the Cold

Check out these unexpected adaptations to extreme cold.

As the ocean continues to warm, scientists look to the past for answers on how to manage today’s environmental problems. (Sophie McCoy/NOAA)

Get to Know the Scientist Reconstructing Past Ocean Temperatures

Meet the scientist reconstructing past ocean temperatures to solve today's environmental problems.

The National Museum of Natural History’s “Earth Temperature History Symposium” convened leading paleoclimate scientists to draw a comprehensive temperature curve of Earth’s past climates. (Lucia RM Martino, Smithsonian)

Leading Scientists Convene to Chart 500M Years of Global Climate Change

The National Museum of Natural History’s “Earth Temperature History Symposium” convened the world's leading paleoclimate scientists to synthesize the latest scientific research in a comprehensive temperature curve of Earth's past climates.

Foraminifera from Ernst Haeckel's Kunstformen der Natur. (Ernst Haeckel)

Here's How Scientists Reconstruct Earth's Past Climates

Scientists apply different methods to the geologic record with the goal of better understanding and quantifying ancient Earth's temperatures.

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