Finding this stellar relic wasn’t easy. It is 60,000 times dimmer than the faintest star visible to the unaided eye. The team also had to distinguish it from many surrounding stars that aren’t so old. Just like an archaeological dig, the hunt succeeded through a combination of patience and clever use of technology.

The post Ancient star discovered through patience and clever use of technology appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Recently, scientists at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama discovered that the brain region responsible for learning and memory is larger in the social queens than in the solitary queens of this species. Their study is the first comparison of the brain sizes of social and non-social individuals of the same species.

The post For sweat bees, being social builds a more developed brain appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Based on decades of cutting-edge research, the 15,000-square-foot Hall of Human Origins offers visitors an immersive, interactive journey through 6 million years of human evolution spelling out how defining characteristics of the human species have evolved during millions of years in response to a changing world.

The post New Hall of Human Origins points to environmental change as major force in evolution of hominins appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Eric Silver of SAO is pursuing innovative and interdisciplinary uses of his technique for chemical imaging at the cellular level.

The post Technology developed for X-ray astronomy is being adapted to study cancer cells appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Long before dawn on a recent morning, Katie Milton and a group of stalwart volunteers, each armed with flashlight and compass, spread out into the jungle to take up positions at 35 listening stations marked on maps of the island.

The post Census reveals 1,200 howler monkeys living on Barro Colorado Island appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

To understand the effects of road salting on ants, Michael Kaspari of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and the University of Oklahoma led a team that looked at how ant colonies are affected by these conditions; their research is published in a recent issue of the journal Ecological Entomology.

The post Study reveals road salt may promote health and well-being of roadside ant colonies appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Scientists and local dive operators first noticed coral bleaching in the waters surrounding Isla Colon, in Panama’s Bocas del Toro province in July. Smithsonian staff scientist Nancy Knowlton and colleagues documented an extensive bleaching event in late September.

The post Coral bleaching event caused by warming ocean waters is documented in Panama appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo recently welcomed two litters of lion cubs over a three-week period – bringing the total number of cubs to seven during the summer of 2010.

The post Seven lion cubs born recently at the National Zoo appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Should global warming cause sea levels to rise as predicted in coming decades, thousands of archaeological sites in coastal areas around the world will be lost to erosion. With no hope of saving all of these sites, three archaeologists—Leslie Reeder of Southern Methodist University, Jon Erlandson of the University of Oregon and Torben Rick from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History—have issued a call to action for scientists to assess the sites most at risk around the world.

The post Scientists issue call to action for archaeological sites threatened by rising seas, urban development appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has unveiled a previously unseen structure centered in the Milky Way--a finding likened in terms of scale to the discovery of a new continent on Earth. The feature, which spans 50,000 light-years, may be the remnant of an eruption from a supersized black hole at the center of our galaxy.

The post Astronomers find giant, previously unseen structure in our galaxy appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Despite the general perception of exurban development as environmentally preferable to urban sprawl, this is not necessarily correct. Housing development is detrimental for natural bird communities even at low housing levels.

The post Exurban development is changing communities of birds in Eastern Forests appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

An instrument on board NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, developed by Smithsonian scientists, is giving unprecedented views of the Sun's innermost corona 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The post Smithsonian instrument reveals Sun’s innermost corona appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

In a new paper, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics astronomer Hagai Perets studies the role of binary planetesimals--clumps that orbit each other and jointly mature via three basic processes.

The post New study examines how planetesimals influence the development of a planetary system appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Using modern genetic analysis, combined with traditional morphology, scientists from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History and the Ocean Science Foundation have discovered seven […]

The post Smithsonian scientists discover seven new species of blenny fish appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Evidence for a diversified sea-based economy among North American inhabitants dating from 12,200 to 11,400 years ago is emerging from three sites on California's Channel Islands.

The post New archaeological evidence reveals California’s Channel Islands as North America’s earliest seafaring economy appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

In recent research on Santa Rosa Island off the coast of Southern California, isotope readings of carbon and nitrogen found in the bones of Chumash Indians and domestic dogs excavated from archaeological sites show that both humans and dogs have nearly identical signatures of stable isotopes.

The post Ancient bond between humans and dogs revealed in isotopic signatures of their bones appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Over 170 molecules have been detected in space, from simple diatomic molecules like CO to complex organic molecules with over 70 atoms, such as fullerene. […]

The post Astronomers explore the rich chemistry surrounding an evolved star appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The discovery of a pattern of X-ray “stripes” in the remains of an exploded star may provide the first direct evidence that a cosmic event […]

The post X-ray stripes in exploded star may reveal highest energies of cosmic rays produced in our Galaxy appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

If intelligent and more advanced civilizations exist on other planets then its a good bet that some of these civilizations turned to asteroid mining long ago. If so, the hallmarks of their mining activities, such as unusual dirty halos of cast-off dust and debris around large asteroids, might be detectable from earth.

The post Evidence of asteroid mining in our galaxy may lead to the discovery of extraterrestrial civilizations appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A remarkable 5,000-year-old deposit of bones representing an entire herd of Persian gazelles recently discovered in northeastern Syria is firm evidence, scientists say, of an ancient hunting practice largely responsible for the near extinction of gazelles in this region today.

The post Archaeological evidence confirms mass hunting of gazelles 5,000 years ago appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The new research reveals that from the period between 1100-1600 small agricultural settlements up and down the Delaware River Valley caused a 50-percent increase in sediment runoff into the Delaware River.

The post Study reveals environmental impact of American Indian farms centuries before Europeans arrived in North America 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.

This new research, which involved both surface and aerial surveys, has revealed an enormous aggregation of whale sharks—the largest ever reported—with up to 420 individuals off the coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico.

The post Scientists discover the largest assembly of whale sharks ever recorded appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

One of the most challenging aspects of this research is simply studying these insects as they are falling, says Yanoviak, a tropical arthropod ecologist at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock. Small body size, rapid descent, and the long distances that they can fall, make accurate data taking a challenge.

The post Lofty experiments with gliding ants reveals secrets of their unusual flight appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The whole-genome analysis of two Tasmanian devils—one that died of a new contagious cancer known as Devil Facial Tumor Disease (DFTD) and one healthy animal—is at the center of a new management strategy to help prevent the extinction of this species.

The post Whole-genome analysis at center of effort to save Tasmanian devil appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A new study shows that the desert tortoise, thought to be a single species for the last 150 years, is in fact two separate and distinct species, based on DNA evidence and biological and geographical distinctions.

The post New study reveals desert tortoise is actually two distinct species appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

New excavations in Indonesia and dating analyses by scientists at the Smithsonian and their colleagues show that modern humans never co-existed with Homo erectus.

The post Scientists show that modern humans never co-existed with <em>Homo erectus</em> appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Gray whales survived many cycles of global cooling and warming over the past few million years, likely by exploiting a more varied diet than they do today, according to a new study by University of California, Berkeley, and Smithsonian Institution paleontologists.

The post Varied diet has allowed gray whales to survive millions of years, study reveals appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Small tissue samples collected from 238 wild turtles at 15 different locations across their range in Southern Mexico, Belize and Guatemala revealed a “surprising lack” of genetic structure, the scientists write in a recent paper in the journal Conservation Genetics.

The post Endangered river turtle’s genes reveal ancient influence of Maya Indians appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The far-out planet, named 55 Cancri e, is twice as big as Earth and nearly nine times more massive. It is most likely composed of rocky material, similar to Earth, supplemented with light elements such as water and hydrogen gas. Scientists estimate the planet’s surface is much hotter than ours: close to 2,700 degrees Celsius.

The post Stellar eclipse gives glimpse of exoplanet: New data reveals a ‘super-Earth’ next door, astronomically speaking appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

In a new paper appearing this week in Science, a group of biologists have shown that females themselves can also limit the evolution of increased elaboration.

The post Females can place limits on evolution of attractive features in males, research shows appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

On Aug. 10, 1846, U.S. President James K. Polk signed the legislation that established the Smithsonian Institution as a trust administered by a Board of […]

The post Science at the Smithsonian: 165 years of scientific achievement appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Now, for the first time scientists at the Smithsonian’s Museum Conservation Institute have developed a fast and reliable method to date silk.

The post New technique for dating silk developed by Smithsonian conservation team appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A new study on the dodo’s island home of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, paints a picture of this unusual bird as an intrepid survivor on par with the giant tortoise for its resiliency.

The post Dodo bird a resilient island survivor before the arrival of humans, study reveals appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

New observations by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, show there are significantly fewer near-Earth asteroids in the mid-size range than previously thought.

The post Infrared survey reveals fewer near-Earth asteroids than previously thought appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Smithsonian scientists and collaborators have determined the evolutionary family tree for one of the most strikingly diverse and endangered bird families in the world, the Hawaiian honeycreepers.

The post Complete evolutionary tree of the Hawaiian honeycreepers traced by Smithsonian scientists, collaborators appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

In a new study researchers from the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute’s Center for Conservation and Evolutionary Genetics used DNA from coyote scat (feces) to trace the route that led some of the animals to colonize in Northern Virginia.

The post New genetic evidence confirms coyote migration route to Virginia and hybridization with wolves appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

In a new paper, Avi Loeb, of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, and Edwin Turner, Princeton University, suggest a new technique for finding aliens: look for their city lights.

The post City lights could reveal E.T. civilization appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Astronomers are confident the Cygnus X-1 system contains a black hole, and with these latest studies they have remarkably precise values of its mass, spin, and distance from Earth.

The post New details on birth of black hole Cygnus X-1 revealed by Chandra X-ray Observatory appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Ornithologists Carla Dove and Storrs Olson used 700- to 1,100-year-old feathers from a long extinct species of Hawaiian ibis to help determine the bird’s place in the ibis family tree. The feathers are the only known plumage of any of the prehistorically extinct birds that once inhabited the Hawaiian Islands.

The post Fossil feathers from a Hawaiian cave help reveal lineage of extinct, flightless ibis appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

As a coastal archaeologist and expert in prehistoric and historic settlement sites in the Chesapeake Bay region, Darrin Lowery of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History and University of Deleware, is carefully watching the effects of coastal erosion and rising sea levels on coastal archaeological sites.

The post Rising seas, development are altering prehistoric artifacts in the Chesapeake’s tidal zone appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Paleontologists studying an extreme short-term global warming event have discovered direct evidence about how mammals respond to rising temperatures. In a study that appeared recently […]

The post Evolution of earliest horses driven by climate change appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A recent decline in Ovenbirds (Seiurus aurocapilla), a ground-nesting migratory songbird, in forests in the northern Midwest United States is being linked by scientists to a seemingly unlikely culprit: earthworms.

The post Earthworms to blame for decline of Ovenbirds in northern Midwest forests, study reveals appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Slithering in at 48 feet long and weighing an estimated one-and-a-half tons, the largest snake the world has ever seen is being brought back to […]

The post Largest snake the world has ever seen is being brought back to life by Smithsonian Channel appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The crustaceans are much more effective when they fight together than when they fight alone, a process McKeon calls the Multiple Defender Effect. “It is a clear example of synergy, and one that underscores the importance of biodiversity in the ocean.”

The post Preventing home invasions means fighting side-by-side for coral-dwelling crabs and shrimp appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

When most people look at a forest, they see walking trails, deer yards, or firewood for next winter. But scientists at the Harvard Forest and […]

The post Development will reduce carbon stored in forests, Smithsonian & Harvard scientists predict appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Incredibly, the narwhale’s only visible tooth is outside of its mouth. Its tusk, in fact, is a giant canine tooth—that can grow as long as 9 feet!

The post For a dentist, the narwhal’s smile is a mystery of evolution appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Two new species of blind snakes found living on small, low-lying atolls in the Caroline Islands, are an unexpected discovery that is quite difficult to explain,

The post Not on a plane, but how did blind snakes ever get to the Pacific’s Caroline Islands? 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.

The specimen’s skull measures 24 centimeters, roughly the size of a regulation NFL football. The shell which was recovered nearby – and is believed to belong to the same species – measures 172 centimeters, or about 5 feet 7 inches, long.

The post Giant prehistoric turtle from Colombia chomped everything in sight–including crocodiles! appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.