Smithsonian Magazine: Explore History, Science, Arts & Culture

The Ness of Brodgar—roughly, “headland of the bridge farm” in Old Norse. The isthmus separates the lochs of Harray and Stenness.

Discover the Astounding Secrets of Scotland's Stone Age Settlements

In the Orkney Islands, archaeologists close the chapter on a legendary excavation, capping two decades of remarkable Neolithic discoveries

Peter Ross
Photographs by Kieran Dodds

The eruption at Zavaritskii volcano created a nearly two-mile-wide caldera with layers of red, black and white from previous eruptive deposits.

Scientists Find the Mysterious Source of the Massive 1831 Volcanic Eruption That Cooled Earth and Made the Sun Appear Blue

Smart News

The Way We Listen to Music Changed Forever When Apple Launched iTunes in 2001

January 9, 2025 5:00 a.m.

Officials Report the First Human Death From Bird Flu in the U.S. Here's What to Know About the Virus

January 8, 2025 4:15 p.m.

Does This Peculiar Statue Found at an Ancient Egyptian Temple Really Depict Cleopatra?

January 8, 2025 3:54 p.m.

The Fool Has Appeared in Art for Centuries. What Do These Portrayals of the Complex Character Say About Us?

January 8, 2025 2:49 p.m.

A Tiny, 'Endangered' Fish Delayed a Dam's Construction in the 1970s. Now, Scientists Say the Snail Darter Isn't So Rare After All

January 8, 2025 2:31 p.m.

Divers Recover Ancient Shipwreck That Sank 2,600 Years Ago Off the Coast of Spain

January 8, 2025 2:07 p.m.

Latest Features

The Ness of Brodgar—roughly, “headland of the bridge farm” in Old Norse. The isthmus separates the lochs of Harray and Stenness.

Discover the Astounding Secrets of Scotland's Stone Age Settlements

January/February 2025

Atop Faneuil Hall sits a grasshopper weather vane, imitating a similar one on London’s Royal Exchange.

Why Faneuil Hall Is the Perfect Metaphor for the American Revolution's Complicated Definition of Liberty

January/February 2025

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The Dramatic Rescue of the Citizen Sailors Who Patrolled the Atlantic Coast Looking for Nazi U-Boats

January/February 2025

Tetiaroa is a haven for wildlife, including sea turtles, crabs, seabirds, sharks, coral and fish.

Marlon Brando Wanted to Build a ‘University of the Sea.’ These Scientists Are Bringing the Late Actor’s Vision to Life

January 7, 2025

“In postwar America, fast food was seen as a ladder to the middle class,” says journalist and author Adam Chandler. “If you were part of a familiar chain, banks were willing to lend you money, and people would come to your establishment right away because you were a proven entity.”

The Roots of U.S. Work Culture—and Why the American Dream Is So Difficult to Achieve Today

January 7, 2025

A brown bear launches into a river in Katmai National Park to try and catch one of the many sockeye salmon spawning in large numbers.

Explore the History and Natural Wonders of Alaska

January 6, 2025

Matanuska Glacier north of Anchorage is one of the best spots for a more intense experience in the Alaskan wilderness.

Seven Ways to Explore Alaska's Endangered Glacial World

January 6, 2025

A baby pygmy marmoset, under the care of an older member of its cooperative family group, perches on a bough in a gallery forest on the banks of the Aguarico River in eastern Ecuador.

They're Adorable. And Endangered. Meet the World's Smallest Monkey: the Pygmy Marmoset

January/February 2025

Current Issue
January/February 2025

Smithsonian magazine January/February 2025 issue cover

Most Popular

1.

Scientists Find the Mysterious Source of the Massive 1831 Volcanic Eruption That Cooled Earth and Made the Sun Appear Blue

The climate-altering eruption came from the Zavaritskii volcano on an uninhabited island in the Pacific that once hosted a Soviet submarine base, according to a new study

2.

Discover the Astounding Secrets of Scotland's Stone Age Settlements

In the Orkney Islands, archaeologists close the chapter on a legendary excavation, capping two decades of remarkable Neolithic discoveries

3.

Divers Recover Ancient Shipwreck That Sank 2,600 Years Ago Off the Coast of Spain

Piece by piece, experts carefully transported the Phoenician vessel to dry land, where it will be studied and preserved

4.

The Roots of U.S. Work Culture—and Why the American Dream Is So Difficult to Achieve Today

A new book examines the evolution of the American workplace, interrogating the idea that hard work is enough to ensure success

5.

They're Adorable. And Endangered. Meet the World's Smallest Monkey: the Pygmy Marmoset

The cute creatures are chatty, family oriented—and facing a shrinking habitat in the remote forests of Ecuador

Special Report

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Our Sustainable Future

A hub dedicated to the latest on how global change affects life on Earth today and on what solutions scientists, including those at the Smithsonian, are researching to build a more sustainable planet

View Full Report

Featured Stories

In Miami, the Nation’s First Chief Heat Officer Charts a Course for Surviving on a Warming Planet

Inside the Effort to Save Earth's Biocrusts

Can the Noise in Sports Arenas Be Turned Into Electricity?

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Smithsonian Videos

Preview thumbnail for video '10 Fun Facts About Jellyfish

10 Fun Facts About Jellyfish

Preview thumbnail for video 'The Ultimate Skywatching Guide for Every Season

The Ultimate Skywatching Guide for Every Season

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10 Enchanting Butterfly Facts Revealed!

Photo of the day

Two giraffes positioned perfectly to create the illusion of a two-headed creature.

History

Between July 1776 and June 1826, Jefferson recorded weather conditions in 19,000 observations across nearly 100 locations.

Discover Why Thomas Jefferson Meticulously Monitored the Weather Wherever He Went

The third president knew that the whims of nature shaped Americans' daily lives as farmers and enslavers

Illustration from a 16th-century Falnama, or Persian Book of Omens

How People of the Past Predicted the Future, From Spider Divination to Bibliomancy

Fascinating finds unveiled in 2024 ranged from a jade Maya funerary mask to a Roman dodecahedron.

Seventy-Seven Fascinating Finds Revealed in 2024, From a Mysterious 'Anomaly' Near the Great Pyramid of Giza to a Missing Portrait of Henry VIII

Science

A view of the soft-bottomed Los Angeles River below the 400-foot-long Taylor Yard Bridge in Elysian Valley. The newest Taylor Yard parcel, currently fenced off as it undergoes toxic remediation, can be seen on the far right.

How the Arrival of an Endangered Bird Indicates What’s Possible for the L.A. River

Could the waterway that the city was built around make a comeback?

By examining the fossils of ancient creatures, scientists are able to see the origins of features that make mammals different from other animals.

How to Make a Mammal in Nine Evolutionary Steps

A photo of Neptune, taken by the Voyager 2 probe, with the colors rebalanced to represent its truest appearance

The Six Most Amazing Discoveries We’ve Made About Neptune

Innovation

Air Ring 48 attaches to the base of a construction helmet, providing crucial airflow to the sweatiest areas of the head and neck.

Could This New Wearable Device Reduce Heat Stress in Construction Workers?

Architecture students at the University of Hong Kong invented a cooling apparatus that attaches to a construction helmet

The products range from programmable rovers to books that introduce the terminology of robotics and circuitry to childen.

Engineers Choose the Ten Best STEM Toys to Gift in 2024

The plant-based egg substitutes available today are less than perfect. Food scientists are working hard to improve them — and, maybe, make them better tasting and more nutritious than the real thing.

Scientists Are Trying to Crack the Recipe for the Perfect Plant-Based Eggs

Travel

Matanuska Glacier north of Anchorage is one of the best spots for a more intense experience in the Alaskan wilderness.

Seven Ways to Explore Alaska's Endangered Glacial World

With the state’s glaciers retreating at alarming rates, there is no time like now to trek, climb, paddle and fly to see them

Loaded with leather and sheepskins, Salvatore Gungui tightens his headscarf. Although only men dress as Mamuthones, the scarf adds a feminine element.

See the Mysterious Winter Parade That Brings Tourists to the Remote Island of Sardinia

The weeklong exhibition showcases items submitted by members of the public.

The Museum of Bad Gifts Is a Celebration of Outlandish Objects, From Ceramic Clowns to Cat Nail Clippings

Arts & Culture

The theme of this year's creepy doll contest at the History Center of Olmsted County is "Circus After Dark."

The Creepy Doll Contest Is Back—and It's Time to Cast Your Vote for the Most Terrifying Toy

Step right up and see the spooky circus dolls—from creepy clowns to frightening fortune-tellers—in a Minnesota museum's vintage toy collection

Mask, Jackson Pollock, 1941

Before He Created His Vibrant Drip Paintings, Jackson Pollock Took Inspiration From Pablo Picasso

The Ofaerufoss waterfall is part of the Nyrdri-Ofaera River, meaning the “impassable northern river.” The river flows into Eldgja, or the “Canyon of Fire.”

Go Chasing Waterfalls With These 15 Awe-Inspiring Images

At the Smithsonian

A northern saw-whet owl in Canada

Meet the Tiny, Adorable Owls That Have Mastered the Art of Hiding

One of the smallest owls in North America, the northern saw-whet lives among us and is rarely seen—but one volunteer science project aims to find them and uncover their secrets year after year

Charles M. Schulz, creator of the "Peanuts" comic strip, at his studio drawing table with a picture of his character Charlie Brown and some awards behind him in 1978

Why the ‘Peanuts’ Characters Still Thrive 25 Years After the Last Original Comic Strip Was Published

Did colonial Americans wear wristwatches?

Did Colonial Americans Wear Wristwatches? And More Questions From Our Readers