Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Cool Finds

Turtles on Versova Beach

Cool Finds

Baby Sea Turtles Spotted on Mumbai Beach for the First Time in 20 Years

Though conservationists are celebrating the apparent success, the creatures may not be as rare as once believed

Mummy Found Inside 2,500-Year-Old ‘Empty’ Coffin

The coffin had been listed as empty for nearly 160 years while stored at the University of Sydney’s museum

Cool Finds

Rare Image of Early Female Pharaoh Found in University Collection

After her reign, Hatshepsut was expunged from Egyptian history, but a carving of her likeness has turned up in Swansea University

Cool Finds

Why This Elephant in India Is Blowing Smoke

It’s likely the puffing pachyderm is eating ash-covered charcoal as a form of self-medication to flush out toxins

rice wine

Bottle of 2,000-Year-Old Rice Wine Found in Chinese Tomb

The bronze jug was dated around the late Warring States time period and the Qin Dynasty

Cool Finds

Wreck of U.S.S. Juneau Discovered in the Solomon Islands

The ship was known as the grave of the five Sullivan Brothers who died aboard it during the Battle of Guadalcanal

New Research

70,000 Years Ago, a Passing Star Shook Up Our Solar System

The red dwarf likely came within one light-year of the sun, altering the course of some asteroids and comets

Stalin, Leningrad, USSR, 1978

Found: 30,000 Photographs by the ‘Russian Vivian Maier’

The photographer’s daughter stumbled upon the photo-films in the family attic

Trending Today

Artifacts Stolen in Massive Archaeological Theft Recovered in Canterbury

Police have recovered most of the 2,000 coins, bones, beads and other items lifted from the Canterbury Archaeological Trust in January

Cool Finds

Nearly 9-Hour Rainbow in Taiwan Sets New Guinness Record

Last November, researchers recorded more than 10,000 photos and videos documenting the long-lasting weather phenomenon

Black clay indicates that what is now a west London suburb was once a marsh near what was then the ocean.

Britain’s Prehistoric Coastline Uncovered in West London

Excavators found a black clay-like material that formed about 56 million years ago, marking the location of an ancient coastline

This satellite image shows Bogoslof volcano erupting on May 28, 2017. The eruption began about 18 minutes prior to this image and the cloud rose to an altitude greater than 12 kilometers (40,000 feet) above sea level.

Hear the Sounds of Volcanic Thunder Recorded For First Time Ever

The sounds were captured twice during two eruptions of Alaska’s Bogoslof volcano in 2017

Scientists are using high-powered X-rays to reveal a hidden text beneath a 10th century religious text.

High-Powered X-Rays Reveal What’s Beneath 11th-Century Religious Text

The hidden text is a translation of ancient Greek medical philosopher Galen’s writing

Cool Finds

Sunshine Sheds Light on 17th-Century Mystery Painting At Hearst Castle

Two bright-eyed guides found an abbreviation and inscription leading to Spanish painter Bartolomé Pérez de la Dehesa

Cool Finds

Rare 1906 San Francisco Earthquake Footage Found at Flea Market

The nine-minute Miles brothers film reel shows the devastation that the powerful quake wrought

The eight cyclones orbiting Jupiter's north pole.

New Research

New Juno Data Gives Unprecedented Glimpse Beneath Jupiter’s Stormy Shell

The massive planet’s storm go much deeper than previously suspected and its interior rotates nearly as a solid mass

Photographers and locals are witnessing what's called "blue ice" near Lake Michigan.

Huge Chunks of Blue Ice Appear on Lake Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac

Blue ice isn’t actually blue, it just appears that way because of how light is reflected on it

Thismia neptunis

Cool Finds

After 150 Years, This Bizarre Plant Was Rediscovered in Malaysia

Thismia neptunis spends most of its life underground, only making a rare appearance to bloom

Cool Finds

Wreck of Aircraft Carrier U.S.S. Lexington Found 76 Years After It Was Scuttled in Battle

The ship was sunk by an American destroyer so it couldn’t be captured in the Battle of Coral Sea, considered to be the first carrier battle in history

Experts speculate this why toad doesn't have a face.

Why Doesn’t This Toad Have a Face?

A graduate student and herpetologist turns to Twitter for answers

Page 90 of 282