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Front of the observatory.
Bronx, New York

William Spain Seismic Observatory

An unassuming stone building houses New York City's oldest seismic station almost 30 feet below the Bronx.
Each bumphead parrotfish has a huge appetite, and produces several tons of poop (and sand) a year.
islands

Why Scientists Snorkled Behind Bumphead Parrotfish in Pursuit of Their Poop

To learn whether these giant, goofy fish are good or bad for beleaguered coral reefs.
Jessica Leigh Hester May 30, 2019
The water was found inside a sediment core from the Maldives archipelago.
science

Found: 20,000-Year-Old Seawater From the Ice Age

It was stored inside limestone beneath the seafloor.
Matthew Taub May 30, 2019
Humboldt's <em>Tableau Physique</em> was a landmark for biogeography.
volcanoes

An Explorer's Famed Infographic May Have a Big, Fatal Flaw

Alexander von Humboldt might have been using the wrong mountain.
Jonathan Carey May 29, 2019
Pythagoras in 2012
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Kendall Band

A three-piece musical sculpture installed between the subway tracks at Kendall Station near MIT.
Video • PinDrop

A 30-Acre Garden Inspired by the Principles of Modern Physics

1:32
Walter Hohmann Monument
Hardheim, Germany

Walter Hohmann Monument

A scale rocket of an Ariane 5 rocket serves as a monument to a pioneer of space science.
Rohnfelder captured dreamy reflections at Mount Giluwe, in Papua New Guinea.
volcanoes

Oh, The Places You'll Go, When You Love to Climb Volcanoes

A photographer who can't get enough of them set out to summit the tallest one on each continent.
Jessica Leigh Hester May 24, 2019
A watermelon vendor in Nigeria.
science

Can Nigerian Drumming Teach You to Pick the Perfect Watermelon?

Acoustics is here to help you find ripe produce.
Reina Gattuso May 23, 2019
Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden.
Los Angeles, California

Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden

This “living museum” at UCLA exhibits thousands of plant species from all over the world.
Noble chafers often live in orchards. But which ones?
science

If You’re in England, Keep Your Eyes Peeled for This Iridescent Beetle

Where, oh where, is the noble chafer?
Jessica Leigh Hester May 20, 2019
A sample of the particles discovered on the beaches of Japan's Motoujina Peninsula.
atom bombs

Found: Glass Fallout From the Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima

The particles have covered nearby beaches, unnoticed, for nearly 75 years.
Matthew Taub May 15, 2019
Heston Blumenthal (right), trying to brie calm, with Thomas Meany, maker of cheeses from humans.
science

These Dairy Devils Are Making Cheese From Celebrities' Bacteria

Aged, ripe, and not for consumption.
Rohini Chaki May 14, 2019
An illuminated atlas depicts Mansa Musa, emperor of Mali from 1312 to 1337, widely known for his vast vast wealth in the form of gold deposits.
science

Medieval Africans Had a Unique Process for Purifying Gold With Glass

And scientists in Illinois have recreated it.
Evan Nicole Brown May 9, 2019
Maskelyne's suit was both dapper and warm.
science

How to Dress Like an 18th-Century Astronomer

Eventually, quilted, glittering pajamas gave way to parkas and moon boots.
Jessica Leigh Hester May 9, 2019
View of the museum ground floor with mammoth skeleton in the foreground.
Lille, France

Lille Natural History Museum

An astounding collection of taxidermy, fossils, skeletons, and even a few strange live beasts.
Uppsala, Sweden

Anders Celsius's Thermometer

The first thermometer made with the almost-universal temperature scale is backwards.
Two fishing vessels nestled in the sands near the former seaport city of Moynaq, Uzbekistan.
science

Why It's So Hard to Study the Toxic Dust Blowing From Earth's Youngest Desert

It all comes down to something scientists call "ground truth."
Jonathan Carey April 25, 2019