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The sun sets behind the hills of Duluth, Minnesota, creating a warm glow on the shimmering surface of Lake Superior.

These 15 Majestic Photographs Showcase the Beauty of the Great Lakes and Will Make You Fall in Love With the Natural Wonders

The images of Lakes Huron, Erie, Superior, Michigan and Ontario are pulled from submissions to the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

Left to right: Ethiopia's Yomif Kejelcha placed second, Kenya's Sabastian Sawe placed first, and Uganda's Jacob Kiplimo placed third

Two Athletes Smashed a Marathon Milestone, Running 26.2 Miles in Under Two Hours. Here’s the Science Behind Their Achievements

An intense training regimen, good weather conditions, physiology and lightweight shoes probably played a role in their astounding performances during the London Marathon on Sunday

The winner ran the half-marathon in 50 minutes and 26 seconds.

A Humanoid Robot Just Beat the Human World Record for the Fastest Half-Marathon During a Race in China

A self-navigating robot called Lightning, developed by Chinese electronics company Honor, won the 13.1-mile race. Its results and others mark significant advancements since last year’s inaugural event, where only 6 of the 21 androids reached the finish line

The entrance to the cellar was found beneath the golf course.

Cool Finds

A Groundskeeper Noticed a Sinkhole on a Golf Course. It Turned Out to Be a Wine Cellar Full of Empty Bottles, Untouched for More Than 100 Years

The cellar is located near the 13th hole of a course at the Davyhulme Park Golf Club in England. Staffers think it was previously part of a manor that was torn down in 1888

The medal features a portrait of Zeus on one side. The other side depicts the Acropolis in Athens.

This Rare Silver Medal From the First Modern Olympic Games in 1896 Just Sold at Auction

At the time, athletes received silver medals for winning first place. The Olympics didn’t introduce gold medals until 1904

The physics behind shoe squeaks is surprisingly complex. 

Why Do Basketball Players’ Shoes Squeak on the Court? Here’s the Physics Behind the Iconic, High-Pitched Sounds

The screeches come from wave-like deformations of sneakers’ flexible soles

The auction house expects the card to sell for between $5 and $7 million.

You Can Buy One of History’s Rarest Baseball Cards—if You Have Several Million Dollars to Spare

The newly graded T206 Honus Wagner card has been in the same family for 116 years. It wasn’t on experts’ radar until last year

Installation view of Norman Rockwell's The Dugout at the Art Institute of Chicago

Norman Rockwell’s Painting of the Crestfallen Chicago Cubs Is Now on View at the Art Institute of Chicago

“The Dugout,” painted in 1948, is the museum’s first-ever artwork by the artist, who created more than 300 iconic covers for the “Saturday Evening Post”

London's Teddy Baldock, pictured here training in 1928, became world bantamweight champion at just 19.

Masked Thieves Steal Statue of British Boxer Teddy Baldock From a London Park, Leaving Only His Boots Behind

Baldock, a former bantamweight world champion, was the only British boxer to win a world title in the 1920s. The statue had been in Langdon Park since 2014

Stoats, also often known as ermines, are carnivorous mammals in the weasel family. Two stoats are the mascots of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

What Is a Stoat? Learn Five Fun Facts About the Adorable Weasels Chosen as the Olympic Mascots

Milo and Tina, a pair of sibling stoats, are representing this year’s winter games in Italy

A 2015 photo of Ron Teasley

Ron Teasley, Pioneering Baseball Player and One of Two Surviving Negro League Veterans, Dies at 99

The former Brooklyn Dodger and New York Cuban leaves a lasting legacy of coaching and service in his hometown of Detroit

For their scale, these microbes are faster and more resilient than any human athlete.

If Microbes Entered the Olympics, These One-Celled Superstars Would Win Gold

They race, they spin, they shoot. Meet the organisms for which physical prowess is more than sport—it’s a matter of life and death

A skier takes advantage of several inches of snow covering blanketing the landscape, including trees that resemble piles of cotton balls, on Revelstoke Mountain in British Columbia.

These 15 Inspiring Images of Winter Sports Will Help You Rediscover Your Olympic Spirit

You don’t have to be an Olympian to enjoy these snowy activities

Alex Honnold climbed Taipei 101 without ropes or safety equipment.

See How Alex Honnold Climbed a Dizzying 1,667-Foot-Tall Skyscraper Without Ropes

He became famous after scaling El Capitan without protective equipment in 2017. Now the 40-year-old athlete has completed the first free solo of Taipei 101 in Taiwan

The new miniature Sphere at National Harbor would have 6,000 seats.

A Smaller Version of the Las Vegas Sphere May Be Coming to the Washington, D.C. Area

Officials have proposed building a mini-Sphere in Maryland’s National Harbor. One-third the size of the original, the structure would cost about $1 billion

The preserve includes roughly five miles of hiking trails, including a mellow route that leads to the beach.

A Stunning Stretch of California’s Rugged Coastline Is Now Open to the Public for the First Time in a Century

Privately owned until 2015, the 547-acre Estero Americano Coast Preserve is welcoming hikers, bird-watchers, wildflower lovers and other outdoor adventurers

Brian Boitano wore these skates during the performance that earned him a gold medal in figure skating at the Calgary Games in 1988. The boots were made by Harlick & Company and the metal by John Wilson Blades.  

See the Blades That Carried Boitano to Gold in the ‘Battle of the Brians’ in the 1988 Olympics

The American’s fabled rivalry with Canadian Brian Orser reached its pinnacle in Calgary on these skates, now part of the Smithsonian collection

The 2026 commemorative coin set, featuring five new designs

See the New Coins Celebrating the Legacies of Elizabeth II, Charles Darwin and the British Grand Prix

Released by the Royal Mint, the designs from this year’s commemorative coin set also honor anniversaries connected to the King’s Trust and the Zoological Society of London

The Radio City Rockettes seen backstage before Saks Fifth Avenue's holiday light show and window unveiling, November 24, 2025

After a Century, the Rockettes Are Still Kicking Their Way Into American Hearts

In 1925, the dance company got its start in St. Louis, and it has since grown to be a Christmas season staple

A 2007 photo of Marty Reisman, who loosely inspired Timothée Chalamet's character in Marty Supreme

Based on a True Story

How Marty Reisman, the Real-Life Inspiration Behind ‘Marty Supreme,’ Revolutionized the Sport of Table Tennis

A new film starring Timothée Chalamet as a fictionalized version of Reisman dramatizes the career of a larger-than-life champion

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