#Smithsonianmag

The magnetic North Pole has shifted over the millennia, leaving clues in the minerals that make up clay antiquities

Silence Dogood. Richard Saunders. Benevolus. Sidi Mehemet Ibrahim. All were pen names that allowed Franklin to say things he couldn’t have otherwise said

Nobody knows who dropped Speedy Weber's correspondence at a USO office in 2022. Researchers have finally tracked down two living relatives who remember him

LymeAlert will hit the market in August. The latest tool against the tick-borne illness could become a medicine cabinet staple

A chemical process called carbonation, which helps seal cracks, could help explain why many ancient Roman structures are still standing today. Researchers hope that the insights will lead to better modern-day building materials

The historical timeline you keep in your head might not be as accurate as you think

Sequoyah’s syllabary faced suspicion initially, but after a demonstration, his version of “talking leaves” was widely embraced. And then the word spread

With their singular coats, naturally craning collars and elegant gait, these skyscraping mammals can’t help but attract sightseers to their neck of the woods

Before common pigeons were considered urban pests, people domesticated them and relied on them for meat, fertilizer, messages and more. A new study suggests humans have lived alongside the winged creatures for at least 3,400 years

The design is one of several coin denominations, and the third of five new quarters, made specially for the country’s semiquincentennial

A new study suggests that certain theropods—two-legged, mostly meat-eating dinosaurs—had shrunken forelimbs as an evolutionary trade-off for their strong skulls

The Swedish painter created bold, vibrant works as early as 1906—several years before contemporaries like Wassily Kandinsky. A new exhibition in France celebrates her sweeping "Paintings for the Temple" series

Sisters from New Jersey spent two months recreating famous artworks while also making sure their dog didn’t get into the edible art supplies

In research reported about 20 years ago, Happy appeared to recognize herself in a mirror. She was later the subject of a failed lawsuit claiming elephants should have certain fundamental human rights

Missy Dunaway’s colorful illustrations combine natural history, folklore and literature to depict the Bard’s birds

Researchers say the numbing agent splashed onto iron scissors and tweezers during a procedure. They were found in a Ming dynasty doctor's tomb

The species, also known as the sihek, was wiped out from its native Guam and kept alive in captivity. Conservationists released some birds on Palmyra Atoll in 2024, and they have been thriving so far

The first three missions are targeted to launch this year. They’ll involve lunar landers developed by several aerospace companies, including Blue Origin, and deliver scientific instruments and a rover

"The People’s Tree" will also incorporate the tree's wood and archive recordings from the public in a series of community artworks

A new movie starring Andrew Scott and Brendan Fraser dramatizes the tense 72 hours before the Allied invasion of Normandy, revealing how meteorology helped determine Operation Overlord's success