Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Cool Finds

The Znamya 2 mirror-solar sail, deployed.

Cool Finds

How a Russian Space Mirror Briefly Lit Up the Night

In 1993, the 65-foot-diameter satellite, called Znamya, briefly lit the Earth like a giant orbiting night light

Seattle's iconic Fremont Bridge.

Cool Finds

Seattle Is Seeking a Writer to Work on a Bridge

Free studio space in a bridge tower is up for grabs

Mahmoud Hariri, from the city of Dara'a, is building a replica of the city of Palmyra from clay and wooden skewers.

Cool Finds

Syrian Refugees Are Recreating Demolished Monuments in Miniature

These artists are recapturing the iconic landmarks destroyed by militants

One of Leonardo's notebooks (left) contains an erased figure (right). Conservators discovered the hidden sketch using multispectral imaging.

Cool Finds

How a Hidden Figure Emerged From One of Leonardo da Vinci’s Notebooks

Modern imaging reveals the approximately 500-year-old sketch

"John Dee Performing an Experiment before Elizabeth I"

Cool Finds

A Painting of John Dee, Astrologer to Queen Elizabeth I, Contains a Hidden Ring of Skulls

The life and work of John Dee contained a strange mix of science and magic

This flower isn't just a pretty face—its the first one ever grown in space.

Cool Finds

Check Out the First Flower Grown in Space

It was a close call for this brilliant orange zinnia

A typical U.S. Army Meal, Ready-to-Eat.

Cool Finds

Here’s What Military Rations From Around the World Are Made Of

From bibimbap to beans

A girl in Vietnam puts flowers on her father’s grave in 1972

Cool Finds

Vietnam Turns to DNA to Identify the Remains of Those Lost in the War

Technological advances in DNA analysis will make this massive effort possible

Half of NASA's astronaut class of 2013 are women.

Cool Finds

Half of NASA’s Newest Astronaut Class Are Women

38 years after NASA hired its first female astronauts, four women are training to go to Mars

A red squirrel from the Rocky Mountains, contemplating its next attack on the power grid, probably.

Cool Finds

Move Over Hackers, Squirrels Are the Power Grid’s Greatest Foe

Cyberattacks may loom large in peoples’ minds, but these fluffy rodents are the ones actually taking down the grid

The Museum of Pinball in Banning, California, boasts a treasure trove of vintage and modern pinball machines and arcade games.

Cool Finds

Take a Turn at the Flippers This Weekend at the World’s Largest Pinball Museum

So you didn’t win the lottery: why not try your hand at a game of pinball?

A work by Pavel Ilie at the Romania Postmodernism Museum's "Before & After" exhibition.

Cool Finds

This Postmodern Art Captures a Tiny Moment of Hope During Romania’s Communist Years

Learn about Romania’s “unfrozen years” at Bucharest’s Postmodernism Museum

A climber stands in front of Mount Everest at Kala Patthar in Solukhumbu District of Nepal

Cool Finds

Virtually Climb Mount Everest From Your Living Room

A new virtual reality experience allows users delve into the world of Everest and scale the beast firsthand

Google helped develop new miniature cameras to capture the Miniatur Wunderland.

Cool Finds

Get a Big View of the World’s Largest Miniature Train Set

All aboard the Cute Train to Tinytown

Cool Finds

Star Light, Star Bright, Here’s Why the Heavens Look Brighter Tonight

It’s not just because the air is clearer

Since this art museum in Brazil was completed in 1996, it has put the relatively unknown city of Niterói on the map.

Cool Finds

These UFO-Like Buildings Are a Space-Age Tourist’s Dream

The future is now—follow this tour of UFO architecture found all around the world

Columbia librarians prepare the 17th-century medical pop-up book for digitization

Cool Finds

Check Out a Medical Pop-Up Book From the 17th Century

Early movable books were geared towards informing adults not entertaining children

A Chicago rally of the Ku Klux Klan in the early 1920s

Cool Finds

The Ku Klux Klan Didn’t Always Wear Hoods

The white hood and robe is just the most popular of a variety of costumes used by the hate group

A rare English gold pound coin dating to 1594-1596, with a portrait of Queen Elizabeth I.

Cool Finds

Queen Elizabeth I Held England’s First Official Lottery 450 Years Ago

The lucky winner took home a prize that included not just money, but also fancy dishware and tapestries

The Chateau d'Ussé has connections with Sleeping Beauty...and contains a slightly creepy surprise.

Cool Finds

The French Castle That May Have Inspired “Sleeping Beauty” Is Filled With Creepy Mannequins

In honor of Charles Perrault’s birthday, explore the Chateau d’Usse

Page 135 of 282