Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Geology

Upper Antelope Canyon

Shimmy Through the World’s Most Spectacular Slot Canyons

Where to explore the best of these narrow, water-worn passageways

The Azure Window in better days, 2009

Trending Today

Malta’s Iconic Azure Window Crumbles Into the Sea

The limestone arch on the island of Gozo was expected to stand several more decades, but a vicious storm Wednesday took out the natural wonder

These tiny filament-like fossils could be the oldest evidence of life on Earth.

New Research

Scientists Think They’ve Found the Oldest Fossil Ever

The controversial claim suggests that microbes lived on Earth half a billion years earlier than thought

Lake Oroville's dam is in danger of breach—but California's drought is still far from over.

Trending Today

Despite Dam Danger, California’s Still In a Drought

Look beneath the surface for an unresolved water crisis

Just around the corner from the Great Barrier Reef, the ocean has been hiding a massive, ancient landslide.

New Research

Scientists Discovered a Gigantic, 300,000-Year-Old Landslide Under the Ocean

Long ago, an almost inconceivable amount of sand shifted, changing the surface of the sea floor

Several views of the beautiful Megistaspis hammondi samples, showing off the intricate details of its undercarriage.

New Research

These Spectacularly Preserved Trilobite Fossils Come Complete With Guts, Gills and Legs

The 478-million-year-old creatures could help explain a series of mysterious fossilized tracks

There are many hurdles to building the proposed border wall. And skimping on any steps means that "big, beautiful" wall won't stand for long.

What Geology Has to Say About Building a 1,000-Mile Border Wall

Compared to erecting a marble palace or high-steepled church, a wall may seem relatively straightforward—it isn’t

Clocking in at 2.4 billion year old, this space rock is unlike the others.

New Research

A Martian Volcano May Have Continuously Erupted for Billions of Years

A space rock found in Northwest Africa provides new clues to volcanic activity on Mars

The walnut-sized stone likely caused back pain, leg pain and difficulty urinating.

New Research

These 12,000-Year-Old Prostate Stones Likely Led to One Prehistoric Man’s Painful Death

The walnut-sized stones were found inside a skeleton buried in modern-day Sudan

So hot, it's cool.

Cool Finds

Watch a Lava “Firehose” Spew Out of a Hawaiian Cliff

Kilauea is putting on a spectacularly scorching show

The beautiful Mauritius island may be hiding a chunk of continent.

New Research

Researchers Think They’ve Found a Mini Continent in the Indian Ocean

The island of Mauritius sits on a sunken piece of earth’s crust torn apart by plate tectonics

New Research

Ancient Asteroid Collision Is Still Raining Space Rocks Down on Earth

A new study shows that today’s meteorites considerably differ from those of the ancient past

This piece of rock might have caught a Neanderthal's eye

New Research

Did Neanderthals Like Pretty Rocks?

An unusual rock in a cave inhabited by Neanderthals in Croatia suggests the hominids may have picked up interesting stones

These ancient amber fossils from Burma in Southeast Asia help complete the patchy record of lizard evolution.

This Year in Ancient Amber: Prehistoric Feathers, Mushrooms, Lizards and More

It’s no Jurassic Park, but this treasure trove of new creatures will still transport you to an ancient world

Yerevan, Armenia

Armenia

How Ancient Volcanoes Created Armenia’s Pink City

In the capital city of Yerevan, volcanic rock flows pink

Nördlingen is located in a crater in southern Germany.

Europe

This German Town Is Embedded with Millions of Tiny Diamonds

Scientists estimate that Nördlingen and the surrounding area contain approximately 72,000 tons of the gemstone

Jasper Forest, a part of Petrified Forest National Park.

Another Weird Facet of America’s Strangest National Park: The Conscience Pile

People mail stolen rocks back to Petrified Forest National Park, but they can’t be returned to their original sites

A sinkhole recently discovered in northwestern China.

Cool Finds

Massive Cluster of Sinkholes Found Deep in China’s Mountainous Northwest

The network of pockmarks is packed with old-growth forests and giant flying squirrels

The largest gem-quality diamond ever found in North America goes on view at the Smithsonian.

The Foxfire Diamond Bedazzles as Smithsonian’s Newest Rock Star

The largest gem-quality diamond ever found in North America glows bright blue in the dark

Australia may look peaceful from space, but it is anything but static.

New Research

Australia Moves Millimeters In Tune With the Seasons

A new study shows how far-off weather patterns affect the continent down under

Page 20 of 29