As a mountain guide, Kami Rita is following in the footsteps of his father. But he says he doesn't see much of a future in the industry for his son, as climate change makes the job more dangerous.

This 55-Year-Old Sherpa Guide Just Summited Mount Everest for the 31st Time, Breaking His Own Record

Kami Rita has been scaling the world’s tallest mountain since 1994. He reaches the summit nearly every year—and sometimes twice in the same year

Two male polar bears square off for battles over territory and, ultimately, mating rights.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

Explore the Spectacular Landscapes and Awesome Animals of Western Canada

Enjoy some northern exposure with these 15 images from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

The men summited Mount Everest just five days after leaving the United Kingdom.

Climbers Summit Mount Everest in Five Days Using Controversial Xenon Gas

The four British former special forces soldiers left the United Kingdom on May 16. By 7:10 a.m. on May 21, they were standing at the top of the 29,032-foot-tall peak

Trail cameras recorded nocturnal subalpine woolly rats roaming around in search of plants to eat.

See the First Photos and Videos of the Rare Subalpine Woolly Rat, a Massive but Elusive Rodent in New Guinea’s Mountains

Working with local Indigenous people, biologist František Vejmělka spent six months surveying the creatures that live on Mount Wilhelm in Papua New Guinea

The female elk was spotted grazing and lounging around Estes Park, Colorado.

‘1 Out of Every 100,000’: This Rare Piebald Elk Is Turning Heads in Colorado With Her Unusually Splotchy Fur

The female ungulate has white patches on her face and body, likely because of an uncommon genetic condition that affects pigmentation

A portion of the Caribbean Sea washes ashore in Kingston, Jamaica

Discover the Dreamy Beauty of Jamaica’s Beaches, Mountains and Plant Life in These Captivating Pictures

A photographer’s trip to the island yields images that showcase its stunning terrain and vibrant culture

The papier-mâché decoys have been placed in a 100-acre field south of the Jackson Hole Airport runway in a bid to attract greater sage-grouse.

Threatened Birds Are Trying to Mate Near a Hazardous Airport in Wyoming. Can Papier-Mâché Decoys Lure Them to Safety?

At Grand Teton National Park, officials have placed handmade look-alikes in a field south of the runway to encourage greater sage-grouse to relocate

"The Beverly Hillbillies" cast in 1963, from left to right: Max Baer Jr. (as Jethro Bodine); Irene Ryan (as Granny, Daisy Moses); Buddy Ebsen (as Jed Clampett); and Donna Douglas (as Elly May Clampett)

The Controversial History of the Word ‘Hillbilly,’ Which Was First Defined in Print 125 Years Ago

In 1900, a political writer described the “hill-billie” as someone who “talks as he pleases, drinks whiskey when he gets it and fires off his revolver as the fancy takes him.” Since then, the label has been used in both mockery and pride

Get your costumes on. It's slush cup season.

Why Skiers Are Ending the Season With a Splash—and Keeping the Raucous Tradition of Pond Skimming Alive

For nearly 100 years, die-hards have been saying goodbye to winter by speeding down the slopes and water skiing over massive puddles

The city of Potosí rests at high altitude in Bolivia.

Can Researchers Find Remedies for the Problems Created by High-Altitude Pregnancies?

In people not adapted to life at altitude, the sparse oxygen can impair fetal growth, causing issues that can last a lifetime

One of the first-ever images of the Mount Lyell shrew in California

See the First-Ever Photographs of the Elusive Mount Lyell Shrew, Finally Caught on Camera in California

A group of young researchers captured and photographed the animal on a three-day expedition to the Eastern Sierra Nevada

Nepal is raising the fee for the first time in about a decade.

The Price to Climb Mount Everest Will Rise to $15,000 This Year

Foreign climbers who want to try reaching the top of the 29,032-foot-tall peak will face higher permit fees in Nepal starting in September

The trees became visible as an ice patch melted on the Beartooth Plateau, which is part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

Melting Ice Reveals Remains of 5,900-Year-Old Trees in Wyoming, Uncovering a Long-Lost Forest

Researchers discovered more than 30 dead whitebark pine trees that were entombed in ice for millennia, representing a bygone ecosystem that could teach us about climate change

The snow-capped Rockies glow bright white in the snow.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

See the Splendor of the Majestic Rocky Mountains

View 15 awe-inspiring images of this range from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

Alpinists ascend along a narrow ridge of ice and snow in the Mont Blanc massif.

Inside One Scientist’s Quest to Understand Why Climate Change Is Making Europe’s Highest Peak More Dangerous

Geomorphologist and veteran climber Ludovic Ravanel is learning how Mont Blanc is shifting—and sharing his discoveries with the Alpine community

 Mount Fuji from Lake Shōji

On This Day in History

It’s Been More Than 300 Years Since Japan’s Breathtaking Mount Fuji Last Erupted

Mount Fuji’s last eruption, which happened on this day in 1707, was also its largest, spewing ash and debris over cities and farms, causing famines, respiratory problems and untold death

This rock contains the first of the newly discovered fossils: It is a portion of a fossil lake shore that preserves very fine details of ripples produced by waves, on which a small reptile left behind footprints of its legs and tail.

Cool Finds

Italian Hiker Discovers Animal Tracks From a Time Before Dinosaurs, Hinting at a Prehistoric Ecosystem

Revealed by melting snow in the Alps, the imprints in rock were left by reptiles and amphibians during the Permian period, which ended with the world’s largest mass extinction

Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs are rebounding from near-extinction in California.

Endangered Sierra Nevada Yellow-Legged Frogs Are Making a Comeback

Scientists are celebrating the recovery of the species in Yosemite National Park, where they were decimated by the introduction of non-native fish and the deadly amphibian chytrid fungus

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!

Pocket gophers are a type of burrowing rodent known for their extensive tunnels.

New Research

How a Team of Gophers Restored Mount St. Helens After Its Catastrophic Eruption With Less Than a Day of Digging

After the volcanic eruption of 1980, scientists released the burrowing rodents for only a brief time, but their activities left a remarkably enduring impact, according to a new study

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