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Latest Features

Formerly a royal residence, the Louvre Palace is now home to one of the world’s most famous museums.  

TRAVEL

See 15 Picturesque Views of Paris

A rhesus macaque on Cayo Santiago, which is less than a mile east of Puerto Rico. Rhesus macaques spend upwards of 20 percent of their time engaged in cooperative behaviors like grooming.

SCIENCE

How Do Animals Change Their Social Habits as They Age?

Bridge, Glenn Kaino, fiberglass, steel, wire and gold paint, 2013-2014

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Tommie Smith’s Raised Fist at the 1968 Olympics Inspired a Massive Golden Sculpture That Signifies the Art of His Protest

Shade-protecting overhangs known as awnings line a street in New York City in the 1850s.

HISTORY

Six Innovative Ways Humans Have Kept Cool Throughout History

Technological advances have changed Olympic sports—including fencing, sprinting, distance running and pole vaulting.

SCIENCE

From Sleek Swimsuits to Specialized Running Shoes, These Five Innovations Transformed the Olympics

Established in 2019, Indiana Dunes National Park represents one of the most understated successes of 20th-century conservation—and the battle is far from over today.

HISTORY

Inside the Fight to Save the Indiana Dunes, One of America's Most Vulnerable National Parks

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SCIENCE

How to Sweat Like an Olympian

A thin slice of the ancient rocks collected from Gakkel Ridge near the North Pole, photographed under a microscope and seen under cross-polarized light

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Geologists Uncover Remnants of Earth’s Mantle That Have Lasted Over 2.5 Billion Years

Current Issue

Smithsonian magazine July/August 2024 issue cover

Most Popular

1.

Smart News

Shipwreck Found in Lake Michigan 130 Years After Sinking With Captain's 'Intelligent and Faithful' Dog Onboard

The captain said he would "rather lose any sum of money than to have the brute perish as he did"

2.

Smart News

Botanists Vote to Remove Racial Slur From Hundreds of Plant Species Names

In a first for taxonomy, researchers opted to change scientific names containing derivatives of the slur “caffra” to derivatives of “afr,” in reference to the plants' origins in Africa

3.

Smart News

Paper Cuttings Made by 17th-Century Schoolgirls Discovered Beneath Floorboards

The fragile cutouts are going on display at Sutton House in London, which was once a boarding school for girls

4.

Smart News

Watch 100,000 Dominoes Topple to the Ground in a Dazzling Eight-Minute Display

Artist Lily Hevesh spent ten days creating the elaborate installation at the National Building Museum

5.

History

Inside the Fight to Save the Indiana Dunes, One of America's Most Vulnerable National Parks

Caught between steel mills, suburbs and a hard place, the 15,000-acre site is a fantasia of biodiversity—and a case study for hard-fought conservation

Smithsonian Voices
Smithsonian Books

The Bizarre Dining Habits of Moths

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

Between Pasture and Forest: The Crusade to Protect the Jaguar in Panama

National Museum of Natural History

Through the Fossil Grapevine: Museum Scientist Helps Untangle How the Fruit Thrived in the Aftermath of Extinction

Smithsonian American Women's History Museum

The Gold Standard: How These Iconic Olympic Athletes Inspired and United Us

Smithsonian Center for Folklife & Cultural Heritage

'Dressing Like a Human' to Honor Uzbekistani Art and Identity

National Museum of American History

What's Happening in August: Events, Exhibits and Resources

See All

Special Report
Olympic rings are seen on the Eiffel Tower near the restored statue of "Cavalier Arabe" on the Pont d'Iéna bridge in Paris on July 4, 2024, ahead of the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games. 

The Paris Olympics

Prepare yourself for the Paris Olympics with this comprehensive guide to the history, science, arts and thrills of the worldwide celebration

View Full Report

Featured Stories

A History of Gymnastics, From Ancient Greece to Tokyo 2020

The Paris Games' Mascot, the Olympic Phryge, Boasts a Little-Known Revolutionary Past

How Wheaties Became the 'Breakfast of Champions'

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Ten Fun Facts About Jellyfish

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The Ultimate Skywatching Guide for Every Season

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The Best Small Towns to Celebrate Winter

Photo of the day

A boy plays with his ball in an alley in Chefchaouen, "the blue city." The Soccer World Cup recently ended, in which Morocco had a notable participation, and that has triggered people's passion for soccer. Some of the stars of the Moroccan team play for big European teams and have become rich and famous. Many Moroccan children see in them a model to get out of the poverty in which they live and they practice many hours to improve their skills. Passion

History

Established in 2019, Indiana Dunes National Park represents one of the most understated successes of 20th-century conservation—and the battle is far from over today.

Inside the Fight to Save the Indiana Dunes, One of America's Most Vulnerable National Parks

Caught between steel mills, suburbs and a hard place, the 15,000-acre site is a fantasia of biodiversity—and a case study for hard-fought conservation

The Wentworth brothers campaigned ceaselessly for the liberty of free speech in the House of Commons. They were driven by the ongoing succession crisis, which they felt Elizabeth was ignoring, placing England in danger of civil war or foreign invasion.

The Brothers Who Asserted Their Right to Free Speech in Tudor England

A 1959 photograph of William "W.R." Saxon, who is standing third from left

This Little-Known Civil Rights Activist Refused to Give Up His Bus Seat Four Years Before Rosa Parks Did

Science

Technological advances have changed Olympic sports—including fencing, sprinting, distance running and pole vaulting.

From Sleek Swimsuits to Specialized Running Shoes, These Five Innovations Transformed the Olympics

Technology has advanced sports including fencing and pole vaulting

The JOIDES Resolution in 2012 off the coast of Costa Rica, on an expedition to understand how earthquakes form

What Will Happen If This Iconic Research Vessel Stops Drilling in the Deep Sea?

A lesser flamingo feeds at Lake Bogoria, in Kenya.

How Will Climate Change Hurt Lesser Flamingos?

Innovation

A new butter alternative uses synthetic fat to create taste of dairy butter without the need for cows.

New 'Butter' Made From Carbon Dioxide Tastes Like the Real Dairy Product, Startup Says

The company, called Savor, uses a synthetic fat to approximate the taste of butter and is seeking regulatory approval

A prototype of the system for collecting the astronauts' urine. In the future, astronauts may go on longer spacewalks that will require them to carry more drinking water.

Spacesuit Prototype Turns Pee Into Drinking Water

A petri dish with bacteria from a stool sample. The researchers found a number of bacteria, fungi and viruses in fecal samples from children that were altered in children with autism.

Gut Microbes Could Help Diagnose Autism, Study Suggests

Arts & Culture

A self-portrait taken in New York by Vivian Maier in 1954

Meet Vivian Maier, the Reclusive Nanny Who Secretly Became One of the Best Street Photographers of the 20th Century

The self-taught artist is getting her first museum exhibition in New York City, where she nurtured her nascent interest in photography

The Museum of Perfume, presented by Paris’ Fragonard Perfumery, is dedicated to exploring the methodology and history behind perfume making.

Eight Weird and Wonderful Museums in Paris

The weapons are adorned with gold and silver designs and an engraved image of Napoleon.

Napoleon's Elaborately Decorated Pistols Sell for $1.8 Million at Auction

Travel

The baba au rhum is forgiving and achievable for the average home cook.

The Boozy History of Baba au Rhum

The French are known for their pastries, but few desserts garner as much attention as this dried-out cake resuscitated with rum

Estimated at 5,000 to 7,000 individuals, the koala population is the largest and healthiest in the state of Victoria, and second only in size to that of Kangaroo Island in the whole country.

This Island Is Inhabited by More Koalas Than Humans

Olympic rings are seen on the Eiffel Tower near the restored statue of "Cavalier Arabe" on the Pont d'Iéna bridge in Paris on July 4, 2024, ahead of the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games. 

The Paris Summer Olympics: Smithsonian's Guide to the Games

At the Smithsonian

A thin slice of the ancient rocks collected from Gakkel Ridge near the North Pole, photographed under a microscope and seen under cross-polarized light

Geologists Uncover Remnants of Earth’s Mantle That Have Lasted Over 2.5 Billion Years

New research suggests that a discrepancy in rocks shows they endured extreme heat, and reveals more about an ancient part of our planet’s history

The peacock mural in James McNeill Whistler's Peacock Room, as seen in the 2022 exhibition “The Peacock Room Comes to America”

How Golden Peacocks on a Dining Room Wall Destroyed a Longstanding Friendship in Victorian Society

Apollo 11 astronauts watched the Earth rise above the moon’s horizon on July 20, 1969.

Apollo Astronauts Left American Flags, Boots and Even Poop on the Moon. Here's Why These Artifacts Matter