Articles tagged as Whales | Smithsonian Magazine

Legacy is scheduled to be on display at the Ontario Science Centre beginning in 2017 before embarking on an international tour.

This Whale Sculpture Was Modeled After a Beached Orca

Canadian artist Ken Hall built Legacy based on 3D scans of the skeleton of Hope, an orca that died on the coast of Washington in 2002

November 18, 2016

A mysterious sound has baffled residents of a far-flung hamlet

November 7, 2016

This drone is designed to start controlled burns of grassland.

10 New Ways to Use Drones

From fighting wildfires to coaching people on their tennis game, the aerial devices are becoming a tool of choice

August 10, 2016

The skeleton of a new species of beaked whale in Unalaska high school

New Research

New Species of Beaked Whale Discovered in Alaska

DNA analysis and a washed up corpse confirm this a new dark-colored species of beaked whale

July 28, 2016

Cool Finds

Track the Whereabouts of This Rare White Whale on Twitter

These beautiful creatures have long delighted those lucky enough to catch a glimpse

July 28, 2016

Two skulls belonging to extinct marine mammal herbivores used in the new study, both from the Smithsonian's collections.

When Did Today’s Whales Get So Big?

More recently than you might think, say scientists who scoured the fossil record

July 14, 2016

Basque craftsmen showed up with a 26 foot-long skeleton, oak timber and other traditional materials and set up shop on the National Mall to build a ship at the Smithsonian’s 2016 Folklife Festival.

There’s a Lot More to This Basque Boat Than Meets the Eye

The lost story of the Basque heritage is just waiting to be discovered and could be revealed just by watching craftsmen rebuild an ancient whaler

July 1, 2016

Sperm whales, giant squid and humans all have a mitochondrial "Eve."

No, a Mitochondrial ‘Eve’ Is Not the First Female in a Species

The latest story about a sperm whale “Eve” shows how people misunderstand the evolutionary term. Fear not: We can clarify

June 28, 2016

Fossilized teeth from an ancient sperm whale

Cool Finds

Landfill Surprises Scientists With 12-Million-Year-Old Whale Fossils

The fossilized remains of a sperm whale were discovered in a newly cleared area of an Orange County landfill

June 27, 2016

New Research

Every Sperm Whale Alive Today May Have Descended From the Same Female

An 80,000-year-old “Eve” was the mother of all modern sperm whales—literally

June 21, 2016

The body of a young female beaked whale washed ashore in South Australia

Cool Finds

Rare Beaked Whale Washes Ashore in Australia

Sporting unusual teeth, the young female offers researchers a chance to study an elusive cetacean

May 17, 2016

Cool Finds

Your High-End Perfume Is Likely Part Whale Mucus

A single pound of “whale vomit” can be worth tens of thousands of dollars

April 14, 2016

But the orcas currently living in its parks will remain there for the rest of their lives

March 17, 2016

A right whale spotted off the coast of New Brunswick, Canada in 2011.

Decades have passed since the endangered species regularly frequented Cape Cod Bay

March 15, 2016

Why Do Beluga Whales Blow Bubbles?

The animal’s whimsical pastime offers insight into the mammalian brain

March 2016

A beached sperm whale on January 13, in Wangerooge, Germany

The cause of the cetacean tragedy is still a mystery

January 29, 2016

Crews abandon their ships during the Great Whaling Disaster of 1871.

Cool Finds

Remnants of a Whaling Disaster Have Been Discovered off the Coast of Alaska

A catastrophe wiped out an entire whaling fleet 144 years ago, now researchers have found some of the wrecks’ remains

January 8, 2016

Scientists expect about 10,000 whales to visit Hawaii’s tropical waters this winter—but they’re taking their time

January 4, 2016

Logs like this one are being digitized in museums all over New England and used to help scientists understand climate change.

A new crowdsourcing project lets amateur enthusiasts contribute, too

December 17, 2015

A NOAA archaeologist examines the wreck of Two Brothers in Hawaii.

Cool Finds

NOAA Made a Sequel to ‘In the Heart of the Sea’

Because the story that inspired Moby-Dick is just the beginning

December 11, 2015