https://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/aliens/RSS feed for AliensenTue, 21 Jul 2026 16:23:23 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/could-life-exist-on-this-nearby-world-in-a-first-astronomers-find-an-atmosphere-on-an-earth-like-exoplanet-in-the-habitable-zone-180989149/While the celestial body seems to host three features that could make a livable environment—an atmosphere, a rocky composition and a temperature that could allow liquid water to sit on the surface—researchers have not currently detected any residentsTue, 21 Jul 2026 16:23:23 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/could-life-exist-on-this-nearby-world-in-a-first-astronomers-find-an-atmosphere-on-an-earth-like-exoplanet-in-the-habitable-zone-180989149/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/whats-behind-steven-spielbergs-lifelong-obsession-with-flying-saucers-and-extraterrestrial-visitors-180988903/Half a century after "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," the director returns to the subject of UFOs with "Disclosure Day." His science fiction films are informed by his fascination with alien encounters in American suburbiaThu, 11 Jun 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/whats-behind-steven-spielbergs-lifelong-obsession-with-flying-saucers-and-extraterrestrial-visitors-180988903/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-microscopic-fungus-survived-nasas-sterilization-protocols-and-is-hardy-enough-to-potentially-contaminate-mars-180988728/The microbe was gathered from the agency's clean rooms, where experts build spacecraft in carefully controlled environments. The findings reveal gaps in the agency's procedures to prevent durable hitchhikersWed, 13 May 2026 18:57:59 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-microscopic-fungus-survived-nasas-sterilization-protocols-and-is-hardy-enough-to-potentially-contaminate-mars-180988728/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/could-life-on-earth-have-descended-from-microbes-that-traveled-from-mars-long-ago-180988295/Scientists demonstrated that an Earthly extremophile might withstand being ejected from the Red Planet on debris spewed into space due to an asteroid strikeThu, 05 Mar 2026 17:00:52 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/could-life-on-earth-have-descended-from-microbes-that-traveled-from-mars-long-ago-180988295/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/jupiters-moon-europa-is-a-top-candidate-for-hosting-alien-life-but-it-may-lack-the-geologic-activity-needed-to-birth-microbes-180988013/On Earth, deep-sea vents may have given rise to the planet’s first life. But nothing of the sort seems to be happening at the bottom of Europa's ocean, a study suggestsFri, 16 Jan 2026 14:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/jupiters-moon-europa-is-a-top-candidate-for-hosting-alien-life-but-it-may-lack-the-geologic-activity-needed-to-birth-microbes-180988013/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-the-disappearance-of-flight-19-a-navy-squadron-lost-in-1945-fueled-the-legend-of-the-bermuda-triangle-180987759/Eighty years ago, five planes vanished during a training run off the Florida coast. A patrol plane sent to search for the men went missing, too, giving rise to a host of conspiracy theoriesFri, 05 Dec 2025 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-the-disappearance-of-flight-19-a-navy-squadron-lost-in-1945-fueled-the-legend-of-the-bermuda-triangle-180987759/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ai-reveals-signs-of-life-in-3-billion-year-old-rocks-next-it-could-continue-the-search-in-space-180987715/The new approach looks at the distribution of molecular fragments in material, allowing for broad surveys in degraded specimensWed, 26 Nov 2025 18:52:18 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ai-reveals-signs-of-life-in-3-billion-year-old-rocks-next-it-could-continue-the-search-in-space-180987715/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/did-the-dwarf-planet-ceres-once-host-life-astronomers-suggest-chemical-energy-could-have-fueled-microbes-long-ago-180987240/Though no direct evidence of life has been found, models suggest Ceres had hot water shooting into its underground oceans billions of years ago, offering potentially hospitable conditionsTue, 09 Sep 2025 17:57:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/did-the-dwarf-planet-ceres-once-host-life-astronomers-suggest-chemical-energy-could-have-fueled-microbes-long-ago-180987240/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/chemical-hints-on-a-distant-planet-offer-strongest-evidence-yet-for-life-outside-our-solar-system-astronomers-say-180986453/The James Webb Space Telescope spotted possible signatures for life in an exoplanet's atmosphere. Still, researchers caution it’s far too early to call the findings definitiveThu, 17 Apr 2025 19:35:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/chemical-hints-on-a-distant-planet-offer-strongest-evidence-yet-for-life-outside-our-solar-system-astronomers-say-180986453/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-body-model-used-during-a-famous-scene-in-et-is-heading-to-auction-180986304/Created by Italian special effects designer Carlo Rambaldi, the three-foot-tall prop can be seen in the film hiding among stuffed animals in 10-year-old Elliott's closetWed, 02 Apr 2025 16:37:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-body-model-used-during-a-famous-scene-in-et-is-heading-to-auction-180986304/