Smithsonian Stories

A horticulturalist lets plants tell the story at the National Museum of the American Indian.

Must be the season of the witch.

A veterinary pathologist approaches the job with humor and compassion. 

Finding and describing the world’s bugs and worms.

Painful stings don’t stop this scientist from describing new jellyfish species.

A scientist in Panama builds a paleontological community from scratch.

What can the media environment of the past tell us about today?

Meet a geologist who analyzes everything from flea fossils to asteroids in support of all science.

The origins of voting outside the polling place in the U.S. date back to 1813.

When modern Americans call themselves patriots, they are evoking a sentiment that is 250 years old.

Learn how the Smithsonian has supported our nation’s historic scientific innovations.

Gonzalo Gonzalez Abad works with the TEMPO space probe to measure pollution across the United States.

Bobbleheads, Magic 8 Balls, chairs, and other artifacts help us understand the past and present. 

Smithsonian astrophysicists are working understand what these far away objects are.

The source of solar wind's energy hasn't been known—until now.

From a cheetah stomachache to soil quality in the tropics, microbiologist Carly Muletz Wolz finds big answers by looking at tiny microbes.

Smithsonian curators encounter ‘Coconut farmers for Harris,’ influencers, vertical signs, and more.

Find out what Smithsonian curators will be doing at the Democratic National Convention.

One group of dinosaurs is still around. To find them, just go outside and look up.

Learn about the grasses that cover around 40 percent of the Earth’s landmass.

In a Civil War battle, bullets cut down an oak tree.

Experiments on marshes of the Chesapeake Bay help us understand the impacts of a warmer future. 

Artist Alexander Calder put abstractions in motion.

Never-before-seen images offer new ways of understanding our universe.