Now that astronomers are finding rocky worlds orbiting distant stars, they're asking the next logical questions: Do any of those worlds have volcanoes? And if so, could we detect them? Work by theorists at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics suggests that the answer to the latter is a qualified "Yes."

The post Can we spot volcanoes on alien worlds? Astronomers say yes appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The Panoramic Survey Telescope & Rapid Response System (Pan-STARRS) PS1 telescope has discovered an asteroid about 150 feet in diameter that will come within 4 million miles of Earth in mid-October.

The post Rapid Response telescope system spots first potentially hazardous asteroid appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

An international team of astronomers has revealed details of a “super-exotic” exoplanet that would make the planet Pandora in the movie Avatar pale in comparison.

The post Astronomers unveil portrait of newly discovered “super-exotic super-Earth” appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Image right: A sea of dunes, sculpted by the wind into long lines, surrounds the northern polar cap of Mars, covering an area as big […]

The post Mars polar dunes appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A study published in the journal Global Change Biology finds that while fertilizer has been the dominant source of nitrogen pollution in Caribbean coastal ecosystems for the past 50 years, such pollution is on the decline, thanks in part to the introduction of more advanced, environmentally responsible agricultural practices during the last decade.

The post National Museum of Natural History’s coral collection used in Caribbean agricultural and sewage pollution study appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Researchers at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute and partnering organizations will build a frozen repository of Great Barrier Reef coral sperm and embryonic cells. Genetic banks composed of frozen biomaterials hold strong promise for basic and applied research and conservation of species and genetic variation.

The post Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute to help create frozen repository of sperm and embryonic cells for Great Barrier Reef corals appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

By compiling and comparing long-term data from stranding records and visual sighting records, both taken from nearly every ocean basin in the world, Pyenson verified that stranding records “faithfully reflect the number of species and the relative abundance” found in live surveys.

The post Stranding records are faithful reflection of live whale and dolphin populations, new study reveals appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Researchers at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute have discovered why older females are rarely able to reproduce—and hope to use this information to introduce vital […]

The post New finding may enable scientists to bolster genetic diversity of captive cheetah population appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Invertebrates make up more than 80 percent of all known species and provide humans with a myriad of valuable services—from crop pollination to their use as food—yet they are overlooked and underrepresented in conservation decisions and on priority lists of threatened and endangered species.

The post Invertebrates are ignored, overlooked by conservationists, policymakers and the public appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

NASA's Kepler spacecraft has spotted a planet that alternately runs late and
early in its orbit because a second, "invisible" world is tugging on it.
This is the first definite detection of a previously unknown planet using
this method.

The post Invisible world “spotted” tugging on visible planet by Kepler spacecraft appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Smithsonian Anthropologist Bruce Smith shares the origins of some favorite Thanksgiving foods.

The post Smithsonian Anthropologist Bruce Smith talks turkey…squash, potatoes and corn appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Suzan Murray, chief veterinary medical officer at the Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park, recently returned from Hanoi, where she led a team of scientists training pathologists from Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam to better sample, recognize and detect wildlife diseases in hopes of preventing emerging pandemic disease.

The post Q&A: National Zoo veterinarian Suzan Murray is working to halt pandemic disease in hotspots around the world appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Researchers from the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology and other partnering organizations spent two weeks at the end of November collecting sperm and embryonic cells during spawning from two species of coral and have built the first frozen repository for the Great Barrier Reef.

The post Smithsonian scientists help build first frozen repository of Great Barrier Reef coral appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

  This photo shows developing embryonic cells of the coral species Acropora tenuis, from the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Researchers from the Smithsonian Conservation […]

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Jeholopsyche liaoningensis is a new genus and species of flying insect from northeastern China, recently revealed in two new fossil specimens.

The post Meet the 125-million-year-old pollinator “Jeholopsyche liaoningensis” appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Recently, after examining hundreds of photos taken by camera traps set-up to monitor clouded leopards in the park, three Smithsonian researchers say Khao Yai also is quite popular with a different kind of visitor: poachers.

The post Poachers at large in Thailand’s nature reserves despite ranger outposts appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Scientists have discovered several specimens of tiny insects covered with pollen grains in two pieces of amber, revealing the first record of pollen transport and social behavior in this group of animals.

The post First ever record of insect pollination captured in 100 million-year-old amber appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Scientists from the Smithsonian and University of British Columbia have discovered a sensory organ in the chin of rorqual whales that communicates to the brain. It orchestrates the dramatic adjustments needed in jaw position and throat-pouch expansion to make lunge feeding successful

The post Scientists discover sensory organ in baleen whales that choreographs movement of their massive jaws and throat-pouch appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

“The Age of Plastic: Ingenuity + Responsibility” a public Smithsonian Symposium that will take an uncommon look at the most common of materials. On Thursday, June […]

The post The Age of Plastic: Symposium June 7 & 8, 2012 appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The newly reported reconstruction of Amazonian prehistory by a Smithsonian scientist, Dolores R. Piperno, and her colleagues suggests that large areas of western Amazonia were sparsely inhabited.

The post Report paints a new picture of early human impact on the Amazon River Basin appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The loud love calls of tiny túngara frogs (Physalaemus pustulosus) that reverberate through the nighttime jungles of Panama are bold advertisements for a suitable mate. […]

The post With picky eating, bats avoid poison prey appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A new video to help aviators identify the cause of bird strikes has been posted on YouTube by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services Airport Wildlife Hazard Program and the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History.

The post Aircraft bird-strike reports can save lives. New video shows how to report, collect and ship evidence appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Accumulations of drifting snow are the most plausible explanation for the presence of a number of puzzling alluvial fan deposits found inside large impact craters on Mars

The post Melting snow likely created fan deposits inside Martian craters, geologists say appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Almost half of the tropical forest reserves examined in a new study are ineffective, researchers say.

The post Tropical arks reach tipping point appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

This copepod Aleutha potter,officially named and described in 2007, is found in Potter Cove, King George Island, Antarctica. Copepod (Kope = Greek for “oar” Podos = […]

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The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory has been awarded a NASA project to build the Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) instrument. TEMPO will measure North American air pollution, from Mexico City to the Canadian tar/oil sands, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific, hourly and at high spatial resolution.

The post NASA funds Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory instrument to track North American air pollution appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Tiny as a mouse with a ‘prout brown’ body and three black stripes on its back Monodelphis gardneri from Peru bears little resemblance to its much larger cousin the North American opossum.

The post Tiny new Peruvian opossum comes from a great big family appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Using echolocation alone the bats found, identified and captured insects perched motionless and silent on the leaves of plants.

The post Common tropical bat uses echolocation with precision previously considered impossible, new experiments reveal appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Among vertebrates few animals rival poison dart frogs for their vibrant electric blue, yellow, red and orange skin colors. Some experts have long believed these […]

The post Poison dart frog toxins best suited for deterring biting arthropods, research reveals appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Spiral galaxies are some of the most beautiful and photogenic residents of the universe. Our own Milky Way is a spiral. Our solar system and […]

The post Powerful computer simulations show how spiral galaxies get their arms appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

All bear species except for one live in either temperate or tropical woodlands. Only the polar bear is a stranger to the forest, living and […]

The post Polar bears in a warming world: Q&A with Don Moore of the National Zoo appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Covered in venomous spines the exotic and strikingly banded Indo-Pacific lionfish would be a painful mouthful to any creature that may try to catch and […]

The post Biologist Andrew Sellers turns lionfish invasion into research opportunity appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Rope, golf balls, sweat pants, bottles and aluminum cans are a few of the discarded items biologist Matt Klope says he has found inside the […]

The post Gray whale specimen an important addition to Natural History Museum collections appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

There is little doubt that human activity is affecting planet Earth, but just how much? And is it all negative? Rick Potts is the director […]

The post Smithsonian anthropologist Rick Potts answers questions about the Anthropocene appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

This composite image of a galaxy illustrates how the intense gravity of a super massive black hole can be tapped to generate immense power. The image […]

The post Black-hole powered jets plow into galaxy appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

As economic expansion and development fragments the forest landscape of central India, the species that rely on that habitat—including endangered tigers and leopards—face dwindling populations […]

The post Forest corridors essential to gene flow in India’s leopard and tiger populations appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Roses, carnations and lilies are today among the most popular flowers people use to express sympathy and condolence. The simple act of sending flowers to […]

The post Funeral flowers in the Stone Age: Q&A with Smithsonian anthropologist Reuven Yeshurun appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Hot spots of mercury pollution in aquatic sediments and soils can contaminate local food webs and threaten ecosystems, but cleaning them up can be expensive […]

The post Toxicity of mercury hot spots can be reduced with application of activated carbon, researchers discover appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

It has all the hallmarks of a paleontological crime scene: a massive graveyard along a remote desert highway containing the fossil bones of at least […]

The post Algae assassin found responsible for whale mass grave in Chile appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Parents normally feel the need to provide well for their kids. For humans, that number of offspring is usually in the single digits, but a […]

The post The secret formula to feeding 900 babies: Scientists uncover milk composition of naked mole-rat queens appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The name Panama is said to mean “abundance of fish.” Now a new study estimates that between 1950 and 2010, the amount of fish taken […]

The post Panamanian fish catch is vastly under-reported, study reveals appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The practice of selectively fishing male blue crabs in the Chesapeake—intended to give females a chance to reproduce—may have a hidden cost. A Bay without […]

The post With too few males, blue crab population may be put at risk appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Investigators from Rock County, Wisconsin, are one step closer to solving the mystery surrounding the death of an unknown teenager thanks to Smithsonian scientists. Christine […]

The post Smithsonian/Wisconsin police narrow search in 20 year mystery appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Humanity is on the threshold of being able to detect signs of alien life on other worlds. By studying exoplanet atmospheres, we can look for […]

The post Finding ET by searching for alien air pollution appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

In theory, crabs of the species Planes major should stay true to their mates for life. Heterosexual pairs of these small crustaceans live on loggerhead […]

The post Faithful crabs engage in risky behavior when opportunity arises appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

When some of the world’s largest mammals come your way, most animals steer clear. Not the genet. The small cat-like carnivore was captured on film […]

The post Maybe it’s safer riding a rhino. Genet expert poses new ideas on the mammal’s hitchhiking behavior appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A bright orange poison dart frog with a unique call was discovered in Donoso, Panama, and described by researchers from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Instituteand […]

The post New Poison Dart Frog from Panama appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Archived feed of this symposium » The world is changing at a rapid pace. Scientists have documented significant changes during the past century in climate, […]

The post Smithsonian Symposium: The Anthropocene appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Millions of people across the United States will sit down Nov. 27 to a traditional Thanksgiving meal, including turkey, potatoes, squash, corn and cranberries. These […]

The post Where did your favorite Thanksgiving Day food originate? Anthropology has the answer appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Have you ever had a pet that seemed just a little bit crazy or odd? Can you be sure that it was in control of […]

The post Crazy eyes and mind control – the power of parasites appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.