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Fire

Excavations in Rome uncovered a building near the Colosseum from the second century C.E. with mosaics and frescoes.

Cool Finds

This Marine-Life Mosaic Discovered Near the Colosseum Offers a Surprising Clue—Its Building May Have Housed Firefighters in Ancient Rome

At the time of the structure’s construction in the second century C.E., firefighting in ancient Rome was a formalized profession

The interior of the Glasgow School of Art’s Mackintosh building, which was significantly damaged by fire in 2018. This photo is from 2023.

Fires and Financial Trouble Leave the Fate of Two Arts Buildings Uncertain in This Scottish City—Including a Century-Old Masterpiece

The historic Glasgow School of Art and the more modern Glasgow Centre for Contemporary Arts were both affected by a significant blaze in 2018

Beachgoers rested at Lake Lacanau's Moutchic Beach in southwestern France last week, as clouds of smoke rose into the sky from the Gironde wildfire.

Dangerous ‘Fire Clouds’ Are Making France’s Wildfires Even More Destructive

It’s the first time the phenomenon, which is fairly common in North America, has been observed in France

Koala conservation is a complex balancing act in Australia. In some regions, populations are in steep decline, but in others, the animals are overabundant.

Koalas Are at Risk of Extinction in Some Parts of Australia. Can Freezing Their Sperm and Eggs Help Save the Iconic Marsupials?

Scientists are preserving the animals’ reproductive cells in liquid nitrogen in a bid to boost genetic diversity in future populations

Homo floresiensis (center) had a skull about the size of a grapefruit and stood a little more than three feet tall.

How a Hungry Komodo Dragon Led Scientists to Determine Our Small, Hobbit-Like Cousins Probably Weren’t That Smart After All

New research indicates “Homo floresiensis” probably wasn’t hunting big game or using fire on Flores Island, suggesting the small-brained species wasn’t quite as “behaviorally advanced” as once hypothesized

Modern humans and our relatives have occupied Wonderwork Cave in South Africa for around two million years.

Early Humans May Have Used Fire 1.8 Million Years Ago, Nearly Doubling the Age of the Oldest Known Evidence for the Feat

In Wonderwerk Cave in South Africa, burned bones were found in a dirt layer associated with Homo erectus. The inhabitants probably hadn’t mastered fire-making, but researchers say they may have moved and maintained flames from a natural fire

A circa 1846 photo of the Patent Office Building

This Building Hosted Lincoln’s Inaugural Ball and Displayed the Declaration of Independence. Today, It’s Home to Two World-Class Art Museums

The Old Patent Office Building now houses the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery. A new exhibition spotlights the structure’s rich history of encouraging innovation

An aerial view shows the construction at the National Museum in Rio de Janeiro.

Brazil Lost 80 Percent of Its National Museum Collection in One Night. Here’s How It’s Fighting to Rebuild

Ever since a 2018 blaze destroyed priceless artifacts and scientifically important specimens, museum staff have devoted themselves to reopening its doors to the public

Archaeologists think the green minerals found in the cave might be malachite, which is treated and processed to make copper.

New Research

Mysterious Green Rocks Discovered in a Remote Cave in Spain Might Be Signs of Prehistoric People Working With Copper

The find challenges assumptions that people in the region thousands of years ago did not spend much time at high altitudes

A photograph taken in 1926 depicting paintings by Peter Paul Rubens that likely burned in a fire in 1945

Fires in Berlin Destroyed Hundreds of Paintings During World War II. Now, a Museum Will Publish Photo Archives of the Lost Artworks Online

A proactive effort to document the collection of the Gemäldegalerie will pay off a century later as negatives of lost paintings by Rubens and Caravaggio are digitized and published online

The McDougall Creek wildfire burns in the hills of British Columbia, Canada, on August 17, 2023. Evacuation orders were put in place for areas near Kelowna, as the fire threatened the city of around 150,000.

Ancient Humans Mastered Fire. Now, Burning Fossil Fuels and Blazing Landscapes Threaten to ‘Undo the World’

Intensifying wildfires across the continent are spewing air pollution, putting human health at risk, particularly Americans living with chronic illnesses

The first episode of "Lucy Worsley Investigates: The American Revolution" premieres on April 7, with the second installment following on April 14. Note: The upside-down Union Jack as seen here was in the original publicity photograph provided by PBS.

America's 250th Anniversary

In a New Documentary, One of Britain’s Most Famous Historians Reframes the American Revolution as a ‘Messy Divorce’

Lucy Worsley’s PBS series highlights the emotional fallout of the conflict, with a focus on the British perspective

The fire-loving fungus Geopyxis, seen here in 2022, after California’s Caldor Fire, has distinctive brown cups with white rims.

These Charcoal-Eating Fungi Flourish After Fires. Uncovering Their Genetic Secrets Could Help Rebuild Burned Ecosystems

Mycologists cultivated fungi they found in post-wildfire landscapes to understand the evolutionary traits behind their ability to thrive in the wake of flames

The remains were found at the base of Mount Hora, in northern Malawi.

New Research

Archaeologists Say This 9,500-Year-Old Burial Is the Oldest Known Evidence of Intentional Cremation Discovered in Africa

Located in Malawi, the site could also be the world’s earliest example of an in situ cremation pyre for an adult, according to a new study

Aerial view of Vardo, Norway, the fishing town at the center of the 17th-century Finnmark witch trials

How a Sudden Winter Storm in 1617 Sparked the Deadliest Witchcraft Trials in Norwegian History

During the 17th-century Finnmark witch trials, 91 people were executed in Norway’s northernmost region, mainly by burning at the stake

In 2025, researchers watched an interstellar comet, learned about human origins and traced the spread of measles.

The Ten Most Significant Science Stories of 2025, From Medical Breakthroughs to an Interstellar Visitor

All year long, these moments captivated the public, demonstrated dangerous trends, and pushed research and innovation forward

An artist's interpretation of an early human ancestor striking flint on a piece of iron pyrite.

New Research

Could These 400,000-Year-Old Rock Fragments Be the Oldest Known Evidence of Human Fire-Making?

Evidence from a site in southeast England suggests early humans were purposefully and repeatedly igniting blazes roughly 350,000 years earlier than previously thought

A fragment of a ceramic smoking pipe found on the site

Cool Finds

A Fire Ravaged a Historic 200-Year-Old Tavern in Ohio. These Are the Artifacts Archaeologists Found in the Wreckage

Excavations at the Overfield Tavern Museum revealed a treasure trove of objects, including jewelry, dishware, a bottle cork, a smoking pipe and early American currency

An aerial view of Altadena on March 11, 2025, shows surviving trees and new greenery amid homes destroyed in the Eaton Fire.

After the L.A. Fires, Locals Turn to Native Plants to Help Shield Homes From Flames and Clean Contaminated Soil

Scientists and community members in Altadena are testing ways that California species can assist efforts to rebuild

Smoke from wildfires can cause off-putting, ashy flavors in wine.

Wildfires Are Ruining Your Favorite Wines. These Bacteria Might Be Able to Help

Microbes already growing on grape plants may help neutralize one of the compounds responsible for wildfire-exposed grapes’ off-putting flavors, new research suggests

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