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The remotely operated vehicle Hercules explores the hydrothermal vents of Lost City during a 2005 expedition.

Diving Deep to Reveal the Microbial Mysteries of Lost City

An expedition sets out this week to explore a field of hydrothermal vents in the deep Atlantic, one of the most extreme ecosystems on the planet

Archaeologist eye to eye to with a sphinx underwater, Eastern Harbor, Alexandria, Egypt, 1st century BC; granodiorite; 27 9/16 x 59 1/16 inches; National Museum of Alexandria (SCA 450); IEASM Excavations; Photos: Jèrôme Delafosse © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation.

Check Out These 10 Must-See Fall Exhibits

Underwater artifacts and Winnie the Pooh take center stage at these new museum exhibits this fall

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Catalonia

Climb a 35-Foot Human Tower Through the Lens of a Photographer

Casteller and photographer Alex Nebot documents the fascinating Catalan sport of stacking people into elaborate towers

Mosquito researcher Kelly Bennett, turkey baster in hand, is on the prowl, collecting specimens for study

Hunting Deadly Mosquitoes in Panama

The latest podcast “Sidedoor” travels with Smithsonian experts on the trail of the buzzing beasts known as the Aedes

Bloede Dam (ca. 2016) near Ilchester, Maryland

Drones Will Track One of the Largest Dam Removals on the East Coast

When a Maryland dam comes down this fall, a team of scientists will deploy drones to monitor the flow of more than two million cubic feet of sediment

The human gut is filled with trillions of microbes.

The Benefits of Probiotics Might Not Be So Clear Cut

An individual’s natural gut bacteria determine whether the so-called dietary supplements help or do nothing at all

Toxic Chemicals Banned 20 Years Ago Finally Disappearing From Arctic Wildlife

But the appearance of new chemicals is creating an uncertain future for polar bears, orcas and seabirds

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Massive Animal Tracking Database Collects Its One-Billionth Creature Location

Oils extracted from the citronella plant are a powerful mosquito repellent.

Why Plant-Based Mosquito Repellents Are So Hard to Make

Bug sprays with DEET feel oily and smell gross. But turning natural plant oils into commercial products isn’t easy

Nervous about how southern television viewers would react, NBC executives closely monitored the filming of the kiss between Nichelle Nichols and William Shatner.

Fifty Years Ago, “Star Trek” Aired TV’s First Interracial Kiss

For actress Nichelle Nichols, the first black woman to have a continuing co-starring role on TV, it was the beginning of a lifelong career in activism

Objects Conservator Dawn Wallace examines the recovered pair of Ruby Slippers. Chief Conservator Richard Barden and Curator Ryan Lintelman also spent hours looking at the shoes in detail.

How the Smithsonian Helped Sleuth Out the True Identity of a Pair of Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers

When the FBI asked museum conservators at the American History Museum for assistance, they discovered the two pairs are twins

A Brief History of the RV

In 1915, technology merged with the “back to nature” movement, leading to the invention of the motorhome

A landslide in the Cusco region of Peru destroyed more than 100 houses in March 2018.

New Software Can Predict Landslides Weeks Before They Happen

Australian researchers are using AI and mathematics to detect tiny changes that may precede the often-deadly events

When the U.S. Government Tried to Make It Rain by Exploding Dynamite in the Sky

Inspired by weather patterns during the Civil War, the rainmakers of the 1890s headed to west Texas to test their theory

An artistic rendering of Edward Jenner vaccinating eight-year-old James Phipps in 1796.

The Mysterious Origins of the Smallpox Vaccine

Though the disease was declared eradicated in 1980, the era of smallpox is far from over

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