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Beaches

The global bodyboard market is estimated to reach $623.6 million by 2035, up from $296.3 million in 2024.

How the Boogie Board Became One of Summer’s Most Popular Toys

Fifty-five years ago, surfer Tom Morey cut a piece of polyethylene foam with a carving knife and created a wave-riding board with a low barrier of entry

A surfer rides a wave during a competition in the Ngor district of Dakar, Senegal, the most westerly point of mainland Africa.

Big Waves Meet Biodiversity: Why Surfing Paradises Could Offer a Key Opportunity for Marine Conservation

A recent mapping study examines places in northwestern Africa where coastal ecosystems overlap with surf breaks, highlighting areas that could support recreation, the environment and local economies, if protected

When did summer "beach reads" become a part of our culture? Book historian Donna Harrington-Lueker takes us back to mid-19th-century leisure.

The History of the Beach Read, From 19th-Century ‘Moral Debasement’ to BookTok

The still-popular genre got its start 150 years ago, when publishers profited off the rise of travel in the United States during an otherwise slow publishing season

Strange, metallic-looking spheres recently washed ashore in Queensland, Australia.

Strange Spheres Washed Ashore on an Australian Beach. Authorities Say They’re Probably ‘Space Balls’—Empty Fuel Vessels From a Rocket

The shiny objects—each roughly twice the size of a basketball—began to appear on July 3. Authorities initially worried that they were hazardous but have since determined that they’re likely safe bits of space junk

Málaga’s famous espetos, or sardines, are cooked over an open flame in traditional blue fishing boats right on the beach.

Coastal Cities of Europe

Chiringuitos Offer the Quintessential Beach Bar Experience on Spain’s Costa del Sol

Steeped in history, the seafood joints are evolving to keep up with a global clientele and tightening environmental regulations

Researchers think some of the footprints were made by barefoot humans roughly 2,000 years ago.

Cool Finds

A Couple Walking Their Dogs Noticed 2,000-Year-Old Footprints on the Beach. They Were Visible for Just Days Before Waves Erased Them Forever

Archaeologists raced to document the semi-fossilized tracks in eastern Scotland. They were likely made by humans, deer and other animals during the late Iron Age

Colorful umbrellas protect beachgoers from the glaring sun on a day when most seemingly opted to stay somewhere cooler.

Get a Dose of Sun, Sand and Sea With These 20 Scenes From the Beach

These highlights from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest are sure to remind you of everything you love about the shore

The petroglyphs were exposed by seasonal changes in the tides and waves.

Cool Finds

Centuries-Old Hawaiian Petroglyphs Emerge From the Sand for the First Time in Nine Years

Discovered in 2016, the sandstone carvings on the western shore of Oahu depict human-like figures and extend across more than 100 feet

Perched on the southern edge of the picturesque Monterey Bay, Pacific Grove, California, is home to the Monarch Grove Sanctuary, one of the largest overwintering sites of monarch butterflies in the region.

The 15 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2025

From a barbecue capital in Texas to the site of the first offensive victory for American forces in the Revolutionary War in New York, these spots are worthy of a visit this year

Also known as by-the-wind sailors, the free-floating Velella velella are coating California beaches once again.

Odd-Looking Blue Creatures Are Washing Up in Large Groups on California’s Beaches Once Again

Strandings of these jellyfish-like animals, sometimes called “by-the-wind sailors,” usually mean spring is coming

Volunteers with the Channel Islands Marine & Wildlife Institute in Santa Barbara, California, rescue a sick sea lion that's likely suffering from domoic acid poisoning.

Sea Lion Bites Surfer Amid One of the Worst Outbreaks of Domoic Acid Poisoning That California Wildlife Rescuers Can Remember

Sea lions, dolphins and birds are sick and dying because of a toxic algae bloom in Southern California—and animal care organizations are overwhelmed by the scale

A hatchling Kemp's ridley sea turtle

Inside the Herculean Effort to Study and Save the World’s Smallest Sea Turtle

After years of steady gains, a decades-long conservation program dedicated to the Kemp’s ridley hits rough seas

Shepherd Chine beach on the Isle of Wight, near where the footprint was discovered.

Cool Finds

Fossil Tour Guide Discovers Giant, Purple Dinosaur Footprint While Walking Along a U.K. Beach

The roughly three-foot-long, clay print speaks to the Isle of Wight’s rich paleontological history, but it will probably disappear within a couple of months due to exposure

A pod of 157 false killer whales washed up on a beach in Tasmania.

Pod of 157 False Killer Whales Stranded on a Tasmania Beach Could Not Be Rescued, Wildlife Officials Say

In the area’s largest stranding event for the species since the 1970s, experts decided euthanasia was the most humane course of action

At dawn, a woman and her dog walk along a serene shore in the Corona Del Mar area of Newport Beach as gentle waves greet them.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

See 15 Stunning Photos of California That Showcase the Golden State’s Majestic Beauty

California offers lovely beaches, forests, deserts, mountains and more!

The penguin was malnourished after swimming thousands of miles from Antarctica.

Surfer Spots an Emperor Penguin on a Beach in Australia, Thousands of Miles From Its Antarctic Home

It’s not clear how the juvenile male ended up so far north, but experts suggest he was motivated by his appetite

A great white shark known to researchers as "Koala" washed ashore on Cape Cod in Massachusetts earlier this week. Scientists are still trying to figure out why.

A Great White Shark Mysteriously Washed Ashore in Cape Cod, and Researchers Don’t Know Why

Authorities have not yet identified the cause of death for the 12.5-foot-long shark, which was named Koala

A biologist holds a Bethany Beach firefly, found on a survey in 2019. The dwindling species is now being considered for protection under the Endangered Species Act.

This Green-Flashing Firefly Could Become the First Ever Listed as Endangered in the U.S.

The Fish and Wildlife Service will consider granting federal protections to the Bethany Beach firefly, which is rapidly losing its coastal habitat to development and climate change

Fossil teeth are quite abundant in Southwest Florida.

Four Places to Find Fossilized Shark Teeth in the United States

Sharks have been losing teeth for 400 million years. Here’s a guide to uncovering some of these plentiful fossils across the country

A bottlenose dolphin photographed in Honduras shows its teeth.

A Dolphin Keeps Biting People in Japan. Researchers Think It’s Just Lonely

A series of dolphin attacks in Wakasa Bay is believed to be the doing of a lone male bottlenose dolphin looking for friends or a mate—but finding only humans

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