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Science / Our Planet

Banksias, 2014

Art Meets Science

Dornith Doherty’s Mesmerizing Photos Capture the Contradictions of Seed Banking

“Archiving Eden,” now at the National Academy of Sciences, shows how guarding against an ecological catastrophe is both optimistic and pessimistic

A sculpture of Louise Arner Boyd alongside the subject herself. This bust is part of the Marin History Museum collection in Novata, California.

The Double Life of a California Socialite Who Became a Leading Arctic Explorer

In the early 20th century, Louise Arner Boyd lived as a philanthropist in the United States and a hero on the high seas

Though Charles Darwin is most famous for his voyage aboard the HMS Beagle and his theory of natural selection, the naturalist was, at heart, a botanist.

How a Love of Flowers Helped Charles Darwin Validate Natural Selection

Though his voyage to the Galapagos and his work with finches dominate the narrative of the famed naturalist, he was, at heart, a botanist

In 2018, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation published its midpoint assessment of the on-going restoration efforts for the country's largest estuary.

Checking In on the Health and Vigor of the Chesapeake Bay

As clean-up milestones are registered by a recent assessment of the nation’s largest estuary, a Smithsonian geographer drops in on the region

By analyzing fossilized vomit and droppings, scientists have determined that Smok wawelski was one of the first predators to crush the bones of its prey.

Prehistoric Crocodile Cousin Crushed the Bones of Its Prey Long Before T. Rex

Fossilized feces filled with bone reveal the feeding habits of an ancient predator

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Ingenious Minds

Studying the History of Life on Earth Keeps This Paleontologist Optimistic

Smithsonian scientist Nick Pyenson explains how taking an interest in natural history can help us understand our future

Chicago on a cold and windy day

What Is Wind Chill, and How Does It Affect the Human Body?

While wind will not change the ambient temperature of the air, it will change the temperature of your body

No one knows exactly how many Emperor penguins are left in Antarctica.

The Complicated Calculus of Counting Emperor Penguins

Scientists journey to the icy bottom of the Earth to see if satellite imagery can determine how many Emperor penguins are left in the world

An illustration showing what Galagadon would have looked like in life, swimming along the river floor.

New Prehistoric Shark Species Discovered Alongside Sue the T. Rex

The teeth of Galagadon nordquistae were discovered in the rock that once surrounded the famous T. rex skeleton.

The species Orobates pabsti represents a group of animals that lived after the first animals to walk on land but before the evolution of modern lizards.

Scientists Used a Robot to Study How Prehistoric Lizards Walked

OroBOT, a robot version of an ancestor to the dinosaurs, is helping fill in some gaps in the evolution of walking

Fatu, born in 2000, is one of the world’s last two surviving northern white rhinos. In this 2013 photograph, she’s hanging out with southern white rhinos at Kenya’s Pejeta Nature Conservancy.

San Diego’s Frozen Zoo Offers Hope for Endangered Species Around the World

The largest animal cryobank in the world is a rich source of genetic knowledge that may one day be used to bring endangered species back from the brink

Researchers often depend on fishing communities to learn what life is like for sharks out in the deep ocean.

To Study Rare Sharks, Scientists Are Heading to Fish Markets

Marine biologists are combing fish markets around the world to study what comes up in the nets, and sometimes the catch is full of surprises

Inupiat hunters set out with harpoons to catch seals during the spring hunt of June 13, 2005, on the Chukchi Sea near Shishmaref, Alaska.

‘The End of Ice,’ and the Arctic Communities Already Grappling With a Warming World

A new book highlights the changes endured by inhabitants of the Arctic, serving as a harbinger of what’s to come in lower latitudes

A newly collared mule deer is released onto its winter range.

New Tracking Technology Reveals Hidden Animal Migration Routes

Using improved GPS collars, scientists are mapping more herd migration routes than ever before, a key to conservation efforts in the western United States

Sunset near Turtle Rock, Joshua Tree National Park.

Using the Sounds of Nature to Monitor Environmental Change

From wind speed to temperature to atmospheric density, the sounds of the wilderness can help ecologists learn a lot about our planet

Up to 1,000 octopus moms care for their brood.

The Top Ten Ocean Stories of 2018

From the most ancient animal known to a newly defined ocean zone, the world’s watery places never cease to amaze

By regrowing trees from stumps, farms can produce sustainable, pesticide-free pine trees.

Stump-Grown Christmas Trees Are the Gift That Keeps on Giving

Using the sustainable and ancient method of coppicing, evergreen Christmas trees can be regrown indefinitely

Illustration of an adult and juvenile ankylosaur.

Armored Dinosaurs Kept Cool With a Labyrinth of Nasal Canals

A fluid dynamics study suggests the large and intricate passages in ankylosaurs’ skulls were a great way to cool off in the Cretaceous

The Smithsonian's Mary Hagedorn and hundreds of colleagues collaborated on the project, which used cryopreserved elkhorn coral sperm to fertilize live eggs to create larvae.

To Help Corals Fight Back, Scientists Are Breeding Populations Separated by Hundreds of Miles

A new study demonstrates that assisted reproduction using cryopreserved sperm leads to offspring that might be more resilient in the face of climate change

Redwood forest in California, similar to some of the terrain Josiah Gregg and his team crossed at the height of the California Gold Rush.

The Ill-Fated Expedition of a 19th-Century Scientist to Explore the California Wilderness

Even facing exposure and starvation, Josiah Gregg insisted on stopping to take measurements and observations, much to his companions’ distress

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