Natural Sciences | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/natural-sciences/RSS feed for Natural SciencesenTue, 02 Dec 2025 13:00:00 +0000The Ten Best Science Books of 2025https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-ten-best-science-books-of-2025-180987773/From “experimental archaeology” to the mysterious appeal of exploration, the wide-ranging subjects detailed in these titles captivated Smithsonian magazine’s science contributors this yearTue, 02 Dec 2025 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-ten-best-science-books-of-2025-180987773/It’s Almost Impossible for Tristan Gooley to Get Lost. That’s One Reason He Has Millions of Followershttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/almost-impossible-tristan-gooley-get-lost-one-reason-millions-followers-180987461/The British adventurer has crossed the Atlantic solo in a plane and a boat. Now he reads tree leaves, puddles and moss to get his bearingsThu, 23 Oct 2025 11:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/almost-impossible-tristan-gooley-get-lost-one-reason-millions-followers-180987461/These Beautiful Microscope Photos Capture Tiny Pests, Spores, Sensory Neurons and Sunflower Hairshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-beautiful-microscope-pictures-capture-tiny-pests-fern-spores-sensory-neurons-and-sunflower-hairs-180987531/Nikon has announced the winners of its 51st annual photomicrography competitionFri, 17 Oct 2025 21:01:31 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-beautiful-microscope-pictures-capture-tiny-pests-fern-spores-sensory-neurons-and-sunflower-hairs-180987531/By Counting Growth Rings, Researchers Solve the Mystery of the Sycamore Gap Tree's Agehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/by-counting-growth-rings-researchers-solve-the-mystery-of-the-sycamore-gap-trees-age-180987377/A new analysis shows that the historic tree was at least 100 to 120 years old in September 2023, when two men illegally chopped it downTue, 23 Sep 2025 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/by-counting-growth-rings-researchers-solve-the-mystery-of-the-sycamore-gap-trees-age-180987377/The World's Oldest Mummies Might Be These Smoke-Dried, 12,000-Year-Old Skeletons From Southeast Asiahttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-worlds-oldest-mummies-might-be-these-smoke-dried-12000-year-old-skeletons-from-south-america-180987348/The human remains predate Chile's Chinchorro mummies and the famously preserved pharaohs of ancient Egypt by millenniaTue, 16 Sep 2025 17:53:22 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-worlds-oldest-mummies-might-be-these-smoke-dried-12000-year-old-skeletons-from-south-america-180987348/The New Science of Aeroecology Reveals So Much About the Amazing Creatures That Populate the Skies and How Humans Can Ensure Their Survivalhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/new-science-aeroecology-tells-more-about-amazing-creatures-humans-can-ensure-survival-180987151/The sky above us is a complex ecosystem, just like the land and sea. A new field of research is bringing a fresh understanding of the birds, bugs and other species that live thereTue, 02 Sep 2025 17:29:16 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/new-science-aeroecology-tells-more-about-amazing-creatures-humans-can-ensure-survival-180987151/A Peculiar, Short-Lived Office at the Smithsonian Once Explored Reports of Bizarre Natural Phenomenahttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/peculiar-short-lived-office-smithsonian-once-explored-reports-bizarre-natural-phenomena-180986242/From surprising squirrel migrations to islands popping up out of nowhere, the organization’s scientists tracked strange events as they happenedWed, 26 Mar 2025 17:30:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/peculiar-short-lived-office-smithsonian-once-explored-reports-bizarre-natural-phenomena-180986242/Inside the Herculean Effort to Study and Save the World's Smallest Sea Turtlehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/inside-the-herculean-effort-to-study-and-save-the-worlds-smallest-sea-turtle-180986138/After years of steady gains, a decades-long conservation program dedicated to the Kemp's ridley hits rough seasFri, 07 Mar 2025 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/inside-the-herculean-effort-to-study-and-save-the-worlds-smallest-sea-turtle-180986138/From Shears to Sweaters, an Experimental New Exhibition Examines the Long, Wooly Relationship Between Humans and Sheephttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/from-shears-to-sweaters-an-experimental-new-exhibition-examines-the-long-wooly-relationship-between-humans-and-sheep-180986085/The Amsterdam show features an eclectic mix of wool garments, life-size sheep replicas and philosophical musings about the interconnectedness of the two speciesWed, 19 Feb 2025 19:06:03 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/from-shears-to-sweaters-an-experimental-new-exhibition-examines-the-long-wooly-relationship-between-humans-and-sheep-180986085/Welcome to the Pyrocenehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/welcome-to-the-pyrocene-180985896/Human use of fire has produced an era of uncontrolled burningWed, 29 Jan 2025 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/welcome-to-the-pyrocene-180985896/