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National Parks

Tourists in Great Onyx Cave, now part of Mammoth Cave National Park, in 1925

How the Kentucky Cave Wars Reshaped the State’s Tourism Industry

Rival entrepreneurs took drastic steps to draw visitors away from Mammoth Cave in the early 20th century

Australian spotted jellyfish typically reach up to 18 to 20 inches in diameter.

Invasive Australian Spotted Jellyfish Washes Up on Texas Beach

The prolific jellies can form huge swarms and clear zooplankton from wide areas of water, sending ripple effects up the food chain

Researchers counted 31 individual wolves during their annual survey from mid-January to early March.

Wolves Are Making a Comeback at Michigan’s Isle Royale National Park

Since their reintroduction in 2018, the wolves have rebounded from just two inbred individuals to 31 healthy animals

Bryce Canyon is one of several national parks hosting stargazing and astronomy festivals this year.

These National Parks Are Hosting Stargazing Festivals in 2023

As more areas grow brighter with light pollution, national parks across the country have become dark-sky havens

Kīlauea erupts early on June 7, after months of signaling it was getting ready to burst.

Hawaii’s Kīlauea Volcano Is Erupting Again—Here’s How to See It

The youngest and most active volcano on the Big Island, it’s expected to draw thousands of tourists

Public swimming at Clift Park in Skaneateles, New York

The 15 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2023

From an ultramarathon capital in the Rockies to a laid-back village in the Florida Keys, these vibrant towns are calling your name

The Big Four Bridge crosses the Ohio River between Louisville, Kentucky, and Jeffersonville, Indiana.

Airbnb Names the Top Trending Destinations for Summer 2023

From relaxing beach towns to historic European cities, these popular spots will soon be bustling with vacationers

The Grand Prismatic Spring at Yellowstone National Park

Art Meets Science

Listen to Music Made From Yellowstone’s Seismic Data

A scientist and a musician performed a live musical rendition of the park’s underground rumblings

Platypuses are egg-laying mammals with webbed feet and duck-like bills.

Platypuses Return to Australia’s Oldest National Park

The egg-laying mammals haven’t been seen at the site since the 1970s, but scientists hope the newly released creatures can re-establish a population

A diver takes a rubbing of John Greer’s gravestone underwater at Dry Tortugas National Park.

Cool Finds

Quarantine Hospital and Cemetery Found Underwater Off the Coast of Florida

Before it was submerged, a small island was home to 19th-century yellow fever patients

The 16-acre resort has Airstreams, luxury canvas tents and suites.

New Glamping Resort Opens Near Zion National Park

AutoCamp Zion features a pool, an eatery, a clubhouse and air-conditioned lodgings

One of the many Edicaran biota fossils within the bounds of Nilpena Ediacara National Park, which is now open in South Australia.

The World’s Newest National Park Protects 550-Million-Year-Old Fossils

The 148,000-acre Nilpena Ediacara National Park in South Australia is helping scientists unravel the mysteries of life’s evolution on Earth

The lioness, photographed by a trail camera in February, is likely around five years old.

First Lion Spotted in Chad National Park in 20 Years Is ‘Beautiful’ and ‘Healthy’

A trail camera snapped a photograph of the lounging big cat, giving wildlife officials renewed hope about the species’ recovery in West and Central Africa

Park-goers hoping to catch a glimpse of the synchronized flashing of fireflies can soon enter a lottery.

How You Can See Tens of Thousands of Fireflies Flash in Unison

The lottery for viewing these bioluminescent bugs at Great Smoky Mountains National Park opens Friday

A sunet behind the mountains in what is now the Avi Kwa Ame National Monument in Nevada

Biden Designates Two New National Monuments

In total, the protected areas across Nevada and Texas encompass 514,000 acres of public lands

An aerial view of the Vjosa River near the city of Permet taken on March 14, 2023.

One of Europe’s Last Free-Flowing Rivers Declared a National Park

Albania will protect more than 31,000 acres of land, including the undammed Vjosa River

This cross-section view shows the Lincoln Memorial atop the undercroft, part of which will house a new museum.

The Lincoln Memorial Is Getting a New Underground Museum

Crews are starting work on the $69 million project this month and hope to finish by 2026

Mina’s goal was to keep the home—and women—central in modern society. Building on the home economists who came before her, she sought to define women’s work as work rather than a vague, idealized calling.

Women Who Shaped History

Mina Miller Edison Was Much More Than the Wife of the ‘Wizard of Menlo Park’

The second wife of Thomas Edison, she viewed domestic labor as a science, calling herself a “home executive”

John H. Smith (left), mayor of Prichard, Alabama, unsuccessfully campaigned for the creation of an Africatown national park.

Untold Stories of American History

The Forgotten 1980s Battle to Preserve Africatown

A new book tells the definitive history of an Alabama community founded by survivors of the slave trade

Tourists flocked to Walker Canyon to see the poppies during the superbloom in 2019.

Will California See a Wildflower Superbloom This Spring?

If the swaths of show-stopping poppies do appear, officials urge tourists to act responsibly

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