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Science / Our Planet

“We’ve been raising CO2 in this marsh for 30 years, but [elevated] CO2 comes with warming,” says Pat Megonigal, lead researcher of the new study in the Global Change Research Wetland at Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC).

Age of Humans

For the World’s Wetlands, It May Be Sink or Swim. Here’s Why It Matters

One of the world’s most long-studied marshes has revealed a wealth of information, but it continues to perplex and intrigue the scientists who analyze it

Antarctica as viewed from space. The world's largest ozone hole—now shrinking—opens over Antarctica every year during local summer and shrinks in the winter.

Age of Humans

The Ozone Hole Was Super Scary, So What Happened To It?

When the ozone hole was discovered, it became a worldwide sensation. Thirty years later, what’s become of it?

A man pulls a cart full of empty PC cases that'll be broken down by recyclers in Agbogbloshie, in Accra, Ghana.

Age of Humans

The Burning Truth Behind an E-Waste Dump in Africa

Ending the toxic smoke rising from an iconic dump in Ghana will take more than curbing Western waste

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Ask Smithsonian: What Is Wind?

Whether arriving on a gentle breeze or a stiff gale, air moves like water responding to high and low pressures around the Earth

Microbes are now known to play many roles in the upper atmosphere: forming clouds, causing rain, and maybe even changing climates.

Age of Humans

Living Bacteria Are Riding Earth’s Air Currents

The high-flying microbes can travel across the globe, spreading disease or even changing climates

Pollutants hang in the air at a coke plant in Pennsylvania. This plant was photographed in 1973, but humans have been polluting their air for many years before that.

Age of Humans

Air Pollution Goes Back Way Further Than You Think

Thousands of years ago, humans were adding lead fumes and other pollutants to the air

A mushroom cloud rises in the sky during an atomic weapons test in the 1950s.

Age of Humans

The Atomic Age Ushered In the Anthropocene, Scientists Say

Geoscientists have concluded that the Age of Humans officially began at the start of the nuclear age.

Our Changing Seas III, 2014

Art Meets Science

Does This Sculpture Depict a Coral Reef Collapsing or Recovering?

Artist Courtney Mattison’s spiral-shaped piece explores the uncertain future for coral reefs

A white stork forages for food at a landfill in Beja, Portugal.

Anthropocene

These Photographs Show the Bleak New Home for the White Stork: A Landfill

Dutch wildlife photographer Jasper Doest followed the path of the white stork’s migration route, forever altered by human activity

Deep Earth creepy crawlies, mushrooms making rain, and a Maya city buried in ash are just a few highlights from this year's collection of science stories.

Cool Science Stories You May Have Missed in 2015

Quantum spookiness, a Maya city buried in ash and more in this year’s surprising science

Top Nine Ocean Stories That Had Us Talking in 2015

From fossil whales to adorable octopuses, here are some of the marine headliners that caught our attention this year

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Age of Humans

Most Oil Needs to Pass Through at Least One of These Tiny Spots

Tankers carry millions of barrels a day through tiny chokepoints, which put the surrounding areas at risk of environmental problems

Smithsonite, or zinc spar, is a carbon zinc ore.This mineral was named in 1832 after English chemist and mineralogist James Smithson (founding donor of the Smithsonian Institution).

We Are Missing At Least 145 Carbon-Bearing Minerals, and You Can Help Find Them

The Carbon Mineral Challenge is asking rock enthusiasts around the world to hunt for the undiscovered forms of this common element

A cheetah stalks past a herd of giraffes in Kenya's Masai Mara National Reserve.

Age of Humans

Humans Caused a Major Shift in Earth’s Ecosystems 6,000 Years Ago

We upended a pattern held for 300 million years, and that may mean we are causing a new phase in global evolution

High in the sky, aerosols from airplane exhaust become encased in ice and form the bright contrails seen in a plane’s wake.

Age of Humans

Airplane Contrails May Be Creating Accidental Geoengineering

Dissipating haze from plane exhaust alters how sunlight reaches the Earth and may be unintentionally affecting our climate

A forest elephant takes an unintentional selfie in a camera-trap photo snapped in South Sudan.

Rare Forest Elephants Seen for the First Time in South Sudan

A recent camera trap survey also spied a wealth of other species thriving in remote forests despite the young country’s civil unrest

The Lake Mills reservoir gets drawn down in March 2012 as part of the Elwha River Restoration, which involved the largest dam removal project in U.S. history.

Age of Humans

Removing a Dam Can Be a Net Win for the Planet

Once hailed as clean power sources, dams are sometimes more costly to maintain than they are to tear down

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Age of Humans

Video: What Is the Anthropocene and Why Does It Matter?

This animation explains why scientists think we’ve entered a new chapter in Earth’s history

A gibbous moon shines over a large petrified log embedded in the sandstone at Blue Mesa in Arizona's Petrified Forest National Park.

Protecting Arizona’s Petrified Forest Can Be as Easy as Taking a Hike

After dispelling myths about vandals and thieves, rangers are working to make this national park more open and engaging

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