As the British marched towards the White House, the first lady ordered a portrait of George Washington to be saved

“Superman isn’t coming. It is a moment in our time when we must look to ourselves, and not take for granted or wait for something from the top to come down, but rather…pick up the torch, carry the torch, to find information and the truth…” – Erin Brockovich applauds Marc Edwards and LeeAnne Walters for their work exposing the Flint water crisis | Smithsonian Magazine American #IngenuityAwards Read more about Edwards and Walters’ work: http://smithmag.co/D4dIHy The Smithsonian has been celebrating innovation in American culture for more than 150 years, and following in this tradition, Smithsonian magazine presents the American Ingenuity Awards, honoring revolutionary breakthroughs in the arts and sciences, education and social progress. http://smithmag.co/R7hyRO

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New DNA analysis adds to growing research indicating the famous Pacific island did not collapse from overuse of resources before the arrival of Europeans

A melting glacier caused a mountain in Greenland to collapse into a narrow fjord, setting off an oscillating wave that rattled seismic detectors around the world

Two Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority railcars were added to an artificial reef off the coast of Georgia to create more wildlife habitat

"Le Lyonnais" descended into the depths off the coast of Massachusetts after colliding with the "Adriatic," a sailing vessel that left the floundering steamship to fend for itself

Officials launched an investigation and recovered the $360,000 print less than a week after it vanished from Grove Gallery. Two men have been charged for the crime

A new paper analyzes three decades of fatalities around the world and predicts how "superbugs" will affect human health in the future

The annual award ceremony featured costumes, songs and paper airplanes as scientists recognized comedic research across ten disciplines

The artist's cityscapes, once dismissed as too masculine, would later influence the floral artworks that became central to her iconic style

The discoveries include sharks, shorebirds, mammals and saber-toothed salmon, with the oldest remains dating to almost nine million years ago

A ring could explain a mysterious arrangement of impact craters near the equator and might even have caused an ice age, according to a new study

The energetic streams are together 23 million light-years in length—roughly as long as 140 Milky Way galaxies lined end to end

Scientists have created "a form of information immortality" meant to instruct future species on how to recreate humans. But who, or what, will find it?

The Horned Serpent Panel from southern Africa predates the first Western scientific description of the dicynodont, a large mammal ancestor with tusks, by at least a decade

A roughly 33-foot-long asteroid called 2024 PT5 will chart a horseshoe-like path around our planet

The baby pygmy hippopotamus in a Thailand zoo has taken the internet by storm, and keepers hope she will help gain momentum for conservation efforts

The annual contest unveiled its winners, highlighting avian photos that focus on conservation issues, the beauty of birds and their sometimes hilarious behavior

The mysterious missive was written by P.J. Féret, who conducted an archaeological dig at the same site in northern France in 1825

Using sound recordings, the team identified the largest known population of the night parrot, a secretive species known as the "Holy Grail of birdwatching"

Most adult king penguins weigh between 31 and 37 pounds. At nine months old, a 51.8-pound Pesto is already looming over his parents

The predatory pod hunts off the coast of Chile and is led by a matriarch called Dakota

Built by the Moche people in the seventh century, the stunningly painted space shows signs of heavy use, including an eroded throne and traces of human hair

The Fish and Wildlife Service will consider granting federal protections to the Bethany Beach firefly, which is rapidly losing its coastal habitat to development and climate change

Earth's highest peak has gained as much as an extra 165 feet in elevation as the planet's crust adjusts due to erosion from a river, according to a new study

While expectations are high for some special sightings, experts warn that comets are notoriously fickle and unpredictable

The wild canines have the same muscles used by domestic dogs to create the wide-eyed, pleading look that captures humans' hearts

Though breast cancer mortality is declining overall, Asian American women and women under 50 have experienced an uptick in diagnoses of the disease

Lizzy, the avatar based on the novel’s Elizabeth Bennet, will hold period-accurate conversations with visitors at Jane Austen’s cottage home

A $1 million grant from the U.S. is the latest effort to support Ukraine's fight to preserve its rich past

Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun discovered microRNA, tiny molecules that play a crucial role in how cells develop, paving the way for new treatments for diseases

Home to more than 300 artists, the neighborhood was submerged under the record-high waters of the French Broad River

John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton shared the award for their work on artificial neural networks and machine learning

During the restorations, visitors will be able to see the famous site via a temporary walkway, which officials will use to study the flow of foot traffic

Scientists converted the patient’s own cells into blood sugar-regulating cell clusters before injecting them back into her abdomen—and one year later, she still doesn't need insulin injections

Scientists used EEG headsets, MRI machines and eye trackers to study volunteers' responses to five paintings housed at the Mauritshuis museum in the Netherlands

Breathtaking shots shine a light on the wonders of wildlife and the threats that human activities pose to the natural world

A Dutch museum famous for displaying art in unconventional locations had placed a pair of painted beer cans in a glass elevator shaft

This week's supermoon is closer to Earth than any other in 2024

Using advanced imaging techniques, researchers discovered modern glue, drill holes and even a fragment of a drill bit in the pastiches

The final 3D atlas of the sky will help scientists study dark matter and dark energy, which make up 96 percent of the universe but remain mysterious

Two comb jellies can merge their digestive and nervous systems and even sync their bodily functions, according to new research. The discovery could have implications for human medicine

A scientist used at-home experiments to test whether cats hesitated when moving through increasingly shorter or narrower openings

New research traces the genetic underpinnings of the enzyme amylase, which helps humans digest starches and sugars

The baby boy’s recovered genome suggests he’s related to a famous Ice Age population

NOAA designated the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary this month, following a decade of advocacy by supporters. The protected site will be finalized after a 45-day review period

Owner George Frandsen has some 8,000 coprolites from dinosaurs, sharks and other creatures

Scientists in France solved the evolutionary mystery of this prehistoric monster, which resembles both the centipedes and millipedes of today