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Water

Surfers ride the bore tide at Turnagain Arm.

How to Surf Alaska’s Bore Tide

Turnagain Arm offers surfers an experience they can’t get anywhere else in the country

Angkor Wat in Cambodia

Angkor Wat May Owe Its Existence to an Engineering Catastrophe

The collapse of a reservoir in a remote and mysterious city could have helped Angkor gain supremacy

On Sunday, a National Weather Service employee snapped a photo of two ice volcanoes erupting on the shores of Lake Michigan.

Why Are Ice Volcanoes Erupting on the Shores of Lake Michigan?

They’re not really volcanoes. But they do spew freezing cold water, and that’s very cool

40 million people rely on the Colorado River for water, but its flow is falling by more than 9 percent with every 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit rise in temperature.

New Research

The Colorado River Is Shrinking as Temperatures Rise

River flow could drop by 19 to 31 percent if carbon emissions continues at their current pace

At Pablo Escobar's former hacienda, tourists are warned about the dangerous presence of an expanding hippo population.

Pablo Escobar’s Pooping Hippos Are Polluting Colombia’s Lakes

A new study suggests the hulking creatures are changing local water bodies with their bathroom habits

Mexico City Is Proposing to Build One of the World’s Largest Urban Parks

More than twice the size of Manhattan, the park could restore the water systems of the region and serve as a model for cities around the world

Nature Morte, Pablo Picasso, 1921

This Picasso Could Be Yours for Just Over $100

A charity raffle is selling the 1921 painting “Nature Morte” for a bonafide bargain

Although ammonoids died out around the same time as most dinosaurs, new computer models are revealing how these marine animals moved through the water.

Video Game-Inspired Models Demonstrate How Prehistoric Squid Relatives Swam Through the Seas

By simulating liquid flows around the shells of ammonoids, scientists study how these ancient animals moved

The New Croton Dam at Croton Gorge Park, about 40 miles north of New York City.

How New York City Found Clean Water

For nearly 200 years after the founding of New York, the city struggled to establish a clean source of fresh water

A general view shows the flooded St. Mark's Square, the Doge's Palace (L), the Lion of St. Mark winged bronze statue and the Venetian lagoon after an exceptional overnight "Alta Acqua" high tide water level, on November 13, 2019 in Venice.

Venice Declares State of Emergency as City Battles Worst Floods in 50 Years

The Italian city’s high-water mark reached 74 inches on Tuesday

For 100 years, the Iron Scow was lodged in the same place in the "powerful upper rapids" above the Canadian Horseshoe Falls, according to Niagara Parks. On Halloween weekend this year, it shifted for the first time.

A Historic Boat, Stuck Above Niagara Falls Since 1918, Finally Breaks Free

But the vessel’s joyride didn’t last long; it is now lodged in a new location some 160 feet downriver

Dolphins and their calves enjoying a summer day in the lower Potomac River.

Cool Finds

Dolphins Are Finally Living and Breeding in the Potomac River Again

About 1,000 bottlenose dolphins have been recorded in the lower reaches of the recovering river, including one that gave birth in August

Trending Today

American Woman Becomes First Person to Swim English Channel Four Times, Nonstop

Sarah Thomas took 54 hours to cross from England to France and back again twice, just a year after battling cancer

An artist's illustration of the planet K2-18b and another planet, K2-18c, that orbits closer to the parent star. Both planets orbit a red dwarf about 110 light-years from Earth in the constellation Leo.

Water Vapor Detected in the Atmosphere of an Exoplanet in the Habitable Zone

The planet K2-18b, about 110 light-years away, could have swirling clouds and falling rains of liquid water droplets

Electrophorus voltai, a newly discovered species of electric eel, pictured swimming in the Xingu River, a southern tributary of the Amazon.

Smithsonian Researchers Triple the Number of Electric Eel Species, Including One With Record-Setting Shock Ability

It’s literally shocking news

Fishermen in Milwaukee during the salmon run.

Milwaukee’s Secret Salmon Runs

In the spring and fall, watch huge salmon fly up two rivers in Milwaukee to spawn with the city as a backdrop

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This Smithsonian Scientist Is on a Mission to Make Leeches Less Scary

Curator Anna Phillips is on a quest to make leeches less repulsive to the public

Trending Today

Here’s How That Internet-Famous ‘Fish Tube’ Works

The cheap, efficient pneumatic tubes may be a good solution for helping salmon and other migratory species move past dams

Trending Today

Welsh Man Is First to Walk the Length of the Yangtze River

Adventurer Ash Dykes took over a year to walk from the river’s source in Tibet to its mouth in Shanghai

The surf break at Waikiki Beach, where the modern form of the sport began.

Learn to Surf on the Break Where It All Began

Waikiki Beach on O’ahu is the home of surfing—and you can take lessons there too

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