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To grab pedestrians’ attention, Pahl built a 19-foot-tall hammer and erected it on the lawn in front of the museum in 2007.

A Small Town in Alaska Is Home to the World’s First Hammer Museum

Perhaps no one knows the history of the tool better than collector Dave Pahl, who opened a shrine of his artifacts in Haines 20 years ago

The U.S. State Department ran two pilot programs to test the online renewal option.

Online Passport Renewal Is Almost Here

In early 2023, qualifying American travelers will be able to skip the lines

Heart Aerospace's ES-30, a regional electric airplane with seats for 30 passengers

Electric Planes Are Taking Flight

More airlines are ordering battery-powered aircraft to help reduce their environmental impact

Crowds on the first day of Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany

Crowds Pour in for Oktoberfest After Two Years of Pandemic Closures

For the first time since 2019, millions will travel to Munich for the famous beer festival

The Eiffel Tower at night

To Save Energy, the Eiffel Tower Dims Its Lights Early

The iconic landmark will go dark at 11:45 p.m. to help the city’s conservation efforts

The Trans Bhutan Trail, which was originally part of the Silk Road, is a historic pilgrimage route dating back thousands of years.

The 250-Mile Trans Bhutan Trail Will Reopen After 60 Years

After a major restoration project, the path connecting 400 cultural and historic sites is once again passable

The 2022 fall foliage map

This Interactive Map Will Help You Plan the Ultimate Leaf-Peeping Trip

Find the best times to admire fall colors across the country

Royal Caribbean tested SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service on its ship called Freedom of the Seas

SpaceX’s Starlink Satellite Internet Is Coming to Cruise Ships

Royal Caribbean says it will begin installing Starlink terminals across its entire fleet immediately

So far, pedestrians have mixed feelings about the experimental new lights in Hong Kong.

Can These Lights Make Crosswalks Safer for Pedestrians Distracted by Their Phones?

Hong Kong has launched an experimental initiative to remind walkers to look up before crossing the street

North Dakota’s sunflower superbloom is underway.

See the Incredible Sunflower Superbloom in North Dakota

Fields filled with the cheery yellow flowers reach peak bloom in late summer

Yosemite’s Mariposa Grove of giant sequoias has reopened after the Washburn Fire.

Yosemite’s Grove of Giant Sequoias Reopens After Month-Long Fire Closure

Park officials say that decades of prescribed burns helped keep the historic trees safe

The Guna, an Indigenous group residing in Panama and parts of neighboring Colombia, have been creating colorfully embroidered clothing for centuries.

Panama

The Colorful History Behind Panama’s Mola

Made by hand, this clothing staple is an important piece of the country’s rich culture

Quebec’s Magdalen Islands in the Gulf of St. Lawrence are at the mercy of rising sea levels and increasing storm surges. The fragile dunes, lagoons, marshes, and sandstone cliffs are all at risk of being lost.

The Sea Is Slowly Consuming Quebec’s Magdalen Islands

Those living in the doomed paradise face a stark choice: resist, adapt, or give in to the ravenous ocean

Travelers are facing long lines, delays, cancellations and other disruptions at airports this summer.

Innovation for Good

Will Electronic Bag Tags Make Air Travel Less Chaotic?

Amid delays, cancellations and long lines, Alaska Airlines is rolling out a new technology that could make checking a bag easier and faster

A family-owned coffee farm in Adjuntas, Puerto Rico, Hacienda Tres Ángeles teaches visitors about the coffee making process from “crop-to-cup.”

How Puerto Rico Became One of the Caribbean’s Top Agritourism Destinations

Across the island, certified sites invite both travelers and local residents to experience farming practices and traditions firsthand

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine's flag hangs on the door of a hijacked TWA Boeing 707 at Dawson's Field in Libya in September 1970.

A Brief History of Airplane Hijackings, From the Cold War to D.B. Cooper

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, hijackings occurred, on average, once every five days globally

Ralph Samuelson on water skiis

The Man Who Invented Water Skiing

One hundred years ago, Ralph Samuelson successfully skied across the waters of Lake Pepin

Desert Breath is a one-million-square-foot artwork smack dab in the middle of the Sahara Desert.

Good News

Eight Works of Art in Unlikely Places

In a new art atlas, author Grace Banks takes readers on a journey to some of the most fascinating artworks found outside of museums and galleries

Las Salinas in Cabo Rojo National Wildlife Refuge

Puerto Rico

These Salt Flats in Puerto Rico Are Cotton-Candy Pink

The distinct color of Las Salinas comes from a combination of algae, bacteria, salt and water

A fossilized Modocia typicalis trilobite from Utah

Five Places to See Trilobites in the United States

In a new book, fossil collector Andy Secher takes readers on a worldwide trek of trilobite hotspots

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