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Researchers have long tried—and failed—to sequence the complete genome of someone who died in Pompeii. 

This Man Was Encased in Volcanic Ash in Pompeii. Here’s What His DNA Reveals

The adult man’s genome is the first to be fully sequenced from remains found in the ancient city

The artwork’s last owner purchased it for just a few hundred pounds. 

Cool Finds

A Vase Kept in an Ordinary Kitchen Turned Out to Be a Qing-Dynasty Artwork Worth Millions

The rare, blue-and-gold vessel was crafted in 18th-century China

Grotto Geyser in Yellowstone National Park

Innovation for Good

Scientists Map Yellowstone’s Underground ‘Plumbing’

The new survey could be useful for everything from microbiology to thermal energy

Hurricane Nora off the coast of Mexico and Hurricane Ida gaining strength in the Gulf of Mexico on August 28, 2021.

NOAA Predicts Another Busy Hurricane Season This Year

2022 will likely be the seventh consecutive year of above-average hurricane activity

Like a regular sail uses wind to navigate across an ocean, solar sails use the pressure exerted by sunlight to move through space. (Pictured: a conceptual illustration of a diffractive solar sail)

Innovation for Good

NASA’s New Solar Sail Could Soon Navigate in Space

Scientists say the flashy tech could help them study the sun’s polar regions

Black soldiers during World War II

History of Now

Nine Army Bases Honoring Confederate Leaders Could Soon Have New Names

Proposed by a government panel, the suggested title changes honor several women and people of color

Visitors looking at sculpture by Skellon Studio in “Cancer Revolution” at the Science Museum.

Exhibition Explores the Art and Science of Cancer—and the Hope of a Future Without It

The Science Museum in London explores the past and future of the disease, and the resilience of its survivors

This portrait of some of the Wharton family children by Joan Carlile represents the work of one of Britain's earliest female professional portrait artists. 

Past Imperfect

She Was One of Britain’s First Professional Female Portraitists. Why Isn’t Joan Carlile Better Known?

Though only ten of her works have been identified, the painter’s influence endures

InSight's final selfie, taken in April 2022.

Trending Today

Dusty InSight Mars Lander Takes Its Final Selfie

The Red Planet probe will likely stop operating sometime later this year

The ceiling was once so filthy, these depictions of Egyptian goddesses could not be seen.

Temple Restoration Reveals Vibrant Art of Vulture-Like Egyptian Goddesses

Millennia of grime, soot and bird poop had covered up—and preserved—the archaeological treasure

Part of the Field Museum’s new permanent exhibition "Native Truths: Our Voices, Our Stories."

Past Imperfect

Field Museum Confronts Its Outdated, Insensitive Native American Exhibition

Co-created with Indigenous partners, the new permanent installation reckons with past harm

A group of Chinchorro mummies, dated between 5000 B.C.E. and 3000 B.C.E.

Cool Finds

Can the World’s Oldest Mummies Survive Climate Change and Other Threats in the Coming Decades?

Up to 7,000 years old, the mummified remains are treasured by local residents

Thanatosdrakon amaru flew around the planet for 20 million years before the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event wiped out the dinosaurs.

Paleontologists Find Biggest Pterosaur Species Ever Unearthed in South America

The ancient fossils with wingspans the size of school buses are estimated to be 86 million years old

A 2015 expedition found two species of sharks living in the hot, acidic water near Kavachi, thus earning it the nickname "Sharkcano."

Trending Today

NASA Snaps Photos of Underwater ‘Sharkcano’ Erupting

Kavachi, a submarine volcano in the southwest Pacific Ocean, is home to several species of sharks and fish that can withstand the extreme environment

This Roman copy of a Greek bronze depicts an idealized male figure. 

This Ancient Roman Statue Embodies the ‘Perfect’ Man. But Was It Stolen?

Italy wants a Roman replica of “Doryphoros” in the Minneapolis Institute of Art returned

Salma brachyscopalis Hampson

U.S. Customs Agents Find Rare Moth Last Spotted in 1912

Larvae and pupae found in seed pods at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport last fall hatched into Salma brachyscopalis Hampson moths

The Carabinieri Police Cultural Heritage Protection Unit returned the painting to the government in a May 19 ceremony.  

Italian Art Police Recovered a Long-Lost Titian. But Is It Really the Renaissance Master’s Work?

The recently confiscated painting is worth an estimated $7 million

The skydiving wandering salamanders are native to northwestern California.

Wandering Salamanders Skydive From Some of the World’s Tallest Trees

The amphibians stretch their limbs and tails to glide in a smooth style

Left: Photo of the dress from a Bonhams auction listing. Right: Father Gilbert Hartke with the gifted garment

There’s No Place Like Home—but What’s the Right Place for Dorothy’s Dress From ‘The Wizard of Oz’?

Donated to the head of Catholic University’s drama department in 1973, the garment’s ownership is now at the center of a legal dispute

Red ocher has served many history, from painting cave walls to tanning hides.

Cool Finds

This 12,000-Year-Old Wyoming Quarry Could Be North America’s Oldest Mine

The state’s archaeologists believe people quarried red ocher at Powars II starting 12,840 years ago

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