A small fossil bear recently identified in Spain suggests China's giant panda has European roots, a new study says.
National Geographic
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Most Topular Stories
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Prehistoric "Panda" Found in Spain—Giant Panda Has European Roots?
National Geographic News: Animals14 May 2012 | 4:26 pm -
Prehistoric "Panda" Found in Spain—Giant Panda Has European Roots?
National Geographic News: Ancient World14 May 2012 | 4:26 pmA small fossil bear recently identified in Spain suggests China's giant panda has European roots, a new study says. -
Sun Is Moving Slower Than Thought
National Geographic News: Space and Tech10 May 2012 | 1:51 pmNew NASA data hint that our star is moving too slow to form a bow shock, a structure long thought to protect us from cosmic rays. -
Tsingy Climbing, Madagascar
National Geographic Photo of the Day15 May 2012 | 11:00 pmThis Month in Photo of the Day: Adventure and Exploration Photos Climber John "Razor Sharp" Benson weaves through skin-ripping pinnacles. In Malagasy, the formations are called tsingy, meaning "where one cannot walk barefoot." The terrain resists intrusions from hunters, hungry cattle, and wildfires. See more pictures from the November 2009 feature story "Living on a Razor's Edge." See more pictures of National Geographic explorations » See pictures of climbing shot by our readers » -
The World’s Largest King Salmon at 30,000 Feet
News Watch15 May 2012 | 4:19 pmRendering of Salmon-Thirty-Salmon II (Courtesy of Alaska Airlines) The notion of flying salmon conjures up a few images for people. Some think of the majestic salmonids jumping the falls and turbulent rapids as the fish “run up” their natal rivers in the Pacific Northwest to spawn. Others envision fishmongers tossing salmon at the famous Pike Place Market in Seattle. From today on, however, I may think of salmon at 30,000 ft and at that–the biggest salmon in the word. This morning I woke up to an advertisement or maybe it was a press release–I don’t quite…
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National Geographic News: Animals
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Prehistoric "Panda" Found in Spain—Giant Panda Has European Roots?
14 May 2012 | 4:26 pmA small fossil bear recently identified in Spain suggests China's giant panda has European roots, a new study says. -
Runner's High Hardwired in People—And Dogs
10 May 2012 | 4:27 pmThe pleasurable sensation known as "runner's high" may have motivated human and canine ancestors to build endurance, a new study says. -
Biggest Crocodile Found—Fossil Species Ate Humans Whole?
8 May 2012 | 4:35 pmThe 27-foot-long predator may have ambushed early humans in what's now Kenya, a new study says. -
"Zombie Ant" Fungus Under Attack—By Another Fungus
4 May 2012 | 8:57 pmBesieged by a fungus that takes over their brains then erupts from their heads, rain forest ants have an unlikely ally—another fungus. -
Glowing Pygmy Shark Lights Up to Fade Away
2 May 2012 | 11:05 pmIn what may sound like soggy logic, the smalleye pygmy shark hides in the dark by lighting up, a new study says.
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National Geographic News: Ancient World
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Prehistoric "Panda" Found in Spain—Giant Panda Has European Roots?
14 May 2012 | 4:26 pmA small fossil bear recently identified in Spain suggests China's giant panda has European roots, a new study says. -
Unprecedented Maya Mural Found, Contradicts 2012 "Doomsday" Myth
10 May 2012 | 6:36 pmUnprecedented paintings and calculations have emerged from under the Guatemalan jungle—including evidence against the 2012 "doomsday myth." -
Howard Carter: "Miraculous," Misunderstood Man Behind Google's Gilded
9 May 2012 | 9:30 pmFind out why the "miraculous," misunderstood archaeologist who found King Tut's ancient tomb was honored Wednesday in a modern way. -
Biggest Crocodile Found—Fossil Species Ate Humans Whole?
8 May 2012 | 4:35 pmThe 27-foot-long predator may have ambushed early humans in what's now Kenya, a new study says. -
Dinosaurs' Gaseous Emissions Warmed Earth?
7 May 2012 | 8:53 pmGiant plant-eaters known as sauropods may have heated the planet by releasing huge amounts of methane, a new study says.
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National Geographic News: Space and Tech
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Sun Is Moving Slower Than Thought
10 May 2012 | 1:51 pmNew NASA data hint that our star is moving too slow to form a bow shock, a structure long thought to protect us from cosmic rays. -
Light From a "Super Earth" Seen—A First
10 May 2012 | 9:37 amNASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has proven it's possible to capture the infrared glow from relatively small alien worlds, a new study says. -
Is Saturn Moon's Haze Old Enough for Life?
9 May 2012 | 2:46 pmSaturn's largest moon may have only recently turned hazy, according to two new studies that could spell trouble for the chances of life. -
Four White Dwarfs Found Eating Earthlike Planets
7 May 2012 | 4:29 pmFour hungry white dwarfs have been found "snacking" on the shattered remains of Earthlike planets, a new study says. -
Spermoon Tonight—Not a Threat to Earth
5 May 2012 | 11:39 amDespite disaster fears, "nothing particularly special" will happen during the year's closest full moon—except a great sky show, experts say.
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National Geographic Photo of the Day
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Tsingy Climbing, Madagascar
15 May 2012 | 11:00 pmThis Month in Photo of the Day: Adventure and Exploration Photos Climber John "Razor Sharp" Benson weaves through skin-ripping pinnacles. In Malagasy, the formations are called tsingy, meaning "where one cannot walk barefoot." The terrain resists intrusions from hunters, hungry cattle, and wildfires. See more pictures from the November 2009 feature story "Living on a Razor's Edge." See more pictures of National Geographic explorations » See pictures of climbing shot by our readers » -
Western Cwm, Mount Everest
14 May 2012 | 11:00 pmThis Month in Photo of the Day: Adventure and Exploration Photos At dawn, a sliver of moon shines above the Western Cwm. See more pictures and read dispatches from the National Geographic Everest Expedition and download the National Geographic magazine app to follow real-time updates from the team. Compare climbing gear then and now » See pictures of Nepal treks from our readers » -
Skiier, Whistler
13 May 2012 | 11:00 pmThis Month in Photo of the Day: Adventure and Exploration Photos A skier in Whistler, Canada, jumps through a ring of fire. (This photo and caption were submitted to Your Shot.) See more of Your Skiing and Snowboarding Photos » Explore the world's best ski towns » -
Kayaking, Greenland
12 May 2012 | 11:00 pmThis Month in Photo of the Day: Adventure and Exploration Photos Kayaking in Torssukatak fjord, near Kummiut, east Greenland (This photo and caption were submitted to My Shot.) See more pictures of paddling shot by our readers » -
Arrigetch Peaks, Alaska
11 May 2012 | 11:00 pmThis Month in Photo of the Day: Adventure and Exploration Photos Arrigetch Peaks, August 23, 2010 "These teeter-tottering granite boulders all wanted to slide," Andrew Skurka says of a talus-covered pass in the central Brooks Range, where his friend Roman Dial joined him. See more pictures from the March 2011 feature story "Circling Alaska in 176 Days." Learn more about National Geographic explorers in the field » See more pictures of National Geographic explorations »
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News Watch
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The World’s Largest King Salmon at 30,000 Feet
15 May 2012 | 4:19 pmRendering of Salmon-Thirty-Salmon II (Courtesy of Alaska Airlines) The notion of flying salmon conjures up a few images for people. Some think of the majestic salmonids jumping the falls and turbulent rapids as the fish “run up” their natal rivers in the Pacific Northwest to spawn. Others envision fishmongers tossing salmon at the famous Pike Place Market in Seattle. From today on, however, I may think of salmon at 30,000 ft and at that–the biggest salmon in the word. This morning I woke up to an advertisement or maybe it was a press release–I don’t quite… -
Maker Lab Teaches Rockets, Circuits, and Soldering
15 May 2012 | 2:40 pmBicycle pump-powered rockets, lunch box speakers, and paper airplanes are just a few of the projects students have tackled in an after-school program launched by MAKE, a leader in the DIY movement that celebrates the “right to tweak, hack, and bend any technology to your will.” For students who participate in the after-school program at McClymonds High School in Oakland, California, hacking, bending and tweaking translate into hands-on training in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Meeting twice weekly at two hours a pop, students learn soldering, circuits, and basic… -
The Bottom Line: Even Fish Need Yearly Checkups
15 May 2012 | 2:36 pmHealth care is a controversial topic these days, but one thing we can all agree on is the importance of annual checkups. Every year, millions of Americans visit their doctors as a proactive measure to stay healthy, identify any underlying conditions, and check for common problems—all in an effort to promote long-term health. What makes sense for us is equally important for life in our oceans. Each year, U.S. ocean fish populations undergo a checkup by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in a report to Congress, the Status of U.S. Fisheries. On May 14, 2012, NOAA… -
One Man’s Vision: How Ranching in the Amazon Can Become a Forest-Friendly Model to the World
15 May 2012 | 9:45 amWilton Batista, President of the Rancher’s Union in São Felix. Credit: Rane Cortez, The Nature Conservancy. Editor’s Note: Rane Cortez works for The Nature Conservancy and is based in Belem, Brazil. She has just moved for two months to the highly-deforested frontier town of São Felix do Xingu in northern Brazil to work with local farmers, ranchers, landowners, indigenous groups and city officials to together promote forest-friendly sustainable growth for the area. This post is the sixth in a series over the next eight weeks that will share her perspective from the frontlines of Amazon… -
Announcing the 2012 NG Emerging Explorers
15 May 2012 | 9:30 amA cyborg anthropologist, a pilot, a digital storyteller and zoologist, a crisis mapper and a guerrilla geographer are among the 15 visionary, young trailblazers from around the world who have been named to the 2012 class of National Geographic Emerging Explorers. Click the image to learn more. Meet 15 of the most inspiring young adventurers, scientists, and storytellers at work in the world today. Meet the 2012 National Geographic Emerging Explorers. Each year, National Geographic selects a small number of people who are pushing the boundaries of discovery, adventure, and global…
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Intelligent Travel
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Charleston in Black+White
15 May 2012 | 9:47 amOh, how I wished for nine days to walk around with a camera. But what I got was about an hour. So what you get are a few quick snaps from my iPhone. They won’t blow you away, but hopefully they’ll add to your ongoing list of reasons to visit Charleston. -
A Couple of Keepers: Tracy + Paul Wilkes
14 May 2012 | 3:32 pmYou have to wonder what Paul and Tracy Wilkes did. Rob banks? Run a Ponzi scheme? They had to have done something terrible. Because no couple devotes so much of their time to doing good. Tracy “Get back in the building.” I got back in the building. Something about her shouting at me, locking the door behind me and rushing us into a room where a dozen or so people – mostly kids – were already huddled on the ground. “There’s a gang fight outside, — about 50 of them — and a lot of the time, there’s gunfire.” The way Tracy Wilkes talks, this is just one of those… -
Come Fly With Me?
12 May 2012 | 1:23 pmAs stated in the video, while driving out of Charlotte, NC, I received a random message on Twitter to join an unknown person in his plane. This is how that went. [Apologies for the bumpy ride -- this was shot and edited on my iPhone.] -
#FriFotos: Two Tickets to Paradise
11 May 2012 | 3:45 pmThis week’s #FriFotos theme is PARADISE. The Paradise side of Mount Rainier is famous for its wild flowers and breathtaking views. Our favorite look out is Inspiration Point. Thanks to Allen Abendroth for submitting this keeper to our My Shot community! Want to see one of your photos featured on our website or Intelligent Travel blog? Make it happen by uploading your favorite travel pics (don’t forget to add a caption!) to ngm.com/yourshot. Tag all your submissions #travelshot – then look for your photos in one of our My Shot galleries or on our blog. #FriFotos is a… -
Greensboro’s for the Dogs
11 May 2012 | 2:38 pmA finger, slightly dirty with chipped nail polish, pointed right at me. ”How would you feel if you were chained up, your fur was covered in snow, and it was 3 degrees below zero outside?!” Kids say the darndest things. Except this happened to be more truth than darnd. The student was describing the winter walk that inspired her art teacher, Libby Scandale, to found Project Bark. Scandale’s North Carolinian drawl makes words like “cold” and “night” come out with two syllables each. Her ink-stained hands, the result of 26 years in the classroom,…
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Digital Nomad
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The North Way
15 May 2012 | 3:37 pmSeven hours across the Atlantic, I nose-kissed the airplane window and waited for my first glimpse through the invisible whiteness below. As we dropped back to Earth, the white clouds pulled away like white cotton stuffing, revealing white snow. Spring snowdrifts still coated the upper reaches of the growing landscape: a blanket of fir trees among the piles of gray stones, a few unplanted fields and farms and then the silvery stretch of sea, unmarred by a single wave. “So this is Norway,” I thought to myself, and with that simple revelation, everything I had ever read on the subject was… -
Durbanites
10 May 2012 | 8:54 amNo matter where I travel in the world, it’s the people I remember most. More than any other aspect (food, architecture, nature, history), it’s the people who make a place. Nowhere is that more true than in the great city of Durban. My week-long exploration of this city-by-the-sea revealed many things, beginning with the realization that despite Durban’s many interesting sights, it is not so much a sightseeing destination. Rather, Durban is a city of doing and being: taking in the great blue scope of the ocean, dipping into curry so hot your eyes burn, catching the trailing… -
Umlazi
7 May 2012 | 2:01 amEveryone kept telling me the townships were so dangerous, but I think that only applies to cows and goats. A lot of cows die in the townships—every time there’s a birth, or a wedding, or a funeral, a cow gets stabbed in the back and then cooked on a fire. Among the Zulu in Durban, most major life events involve slaughtering an animal and then sharing the meat. On a Sunday afternoon, I followed the smell of boiling beef to an outdoor tent floating above a yard in Umlazi Township. Neighbors came and went, carrying offerings of food and drink. Outside, a few old men tended the fire and… -
Zulu Muthi Market
4 May 2012 | 4:46 pmA dead, dried-up monkey hangs from the shop, next to a gaping set of shark jaws. Strips of dried animal skin dangle in a row, and as I walk past, I guess at each remnant’s former animal life: a crocodile, an antelope, a vulture, and several long black mambas. Beneath the display, on a hand-constructed table, there’s a kind of discount bin of dried animal parts: broken horns, fuzzy pelts, lizard feet and rodent heads. One whiff smells a lot like very dead animals, but these are actually all ingredients for muthi – traditional Zulu medicine. Durban’s muthi market is one… -
Eating Bunnies
3 May 2012 | 4:58 pmI’ve only eaten one bunny so far, but I am sure to devour at least one more before I leave. Bunnies are delicious. Bunny chow (or “a bunny”) is classic Durban cuisine: a hollowed-out square loaf of soft bread, filled with rich, spicy HOT curry that you eat with your fingers. It’s messy, very yummy, and travels well. Like all great South African food, Bunny Chow represents a grand mix of culture and flavors, blending traditions from Durban’s Indian population (curry that makes you gasp), with the European (white bread), and African (use your hands). Bunnies come…
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News Watch » Breaking Orbit
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Watch Bits of Halley’s Comet Fall this Weekend
4 May 2012 | 4:18 pmThe Eta Aquarid meteor shower is set to peak over the weekend of May 5 and 6 however even with the full supermoon’s glare to contend with there may end up being more to see than you think. Favoring southern hemisphere observers, from a dark sky as many as 20 to 30 shooting stars can be visible under ideal dark location far from light pollution. For observers in the Northern Hemisphere, more modest numbers of 5 to 20 per hour at peak time after local midnight, thanks to the Moon’s glare and the shower radiant appearing very close to the southeastern horizon. Meteors peak at predawn in… -
Celebrate the Night Sky this Weekend!
27 Apr 2012 | 4:37 pmGet set for International Astronomy Day on Saturday, April 28! This annual event, celebrating its 39th year, began as a high profile way of drawing public attention to the science and the hobby through star parties, indoor exhibits and activities. It has since mushroomed in size and scope and is celebrated in dozens of countries around the world. Local astronomy clubs will be sharing the wonders of the universe so take a look to see what events are happening in your neck of the woods. This is a great chance for you to learn about the night sky and about telescopes. If you are in the market… -
Wheels Stopped, Discovery, Welcome Home
21 Apr 2012 | 8:25 pmAs the space shuttle Discovery towed into the hangar at the Smithsonian’s Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles Airport, only a few members of the public and press remained to see her final motion. Space shuttle Discovery in the Human Spaceflight hangar at Smithsonian’s Udvar-Hazy Center. Photo Credit: Jon Brack Click Here to View in Zoomable High Resolution A worker with the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum taps a chock in front of Discovery’s rear tire after wheels stop. Photo Credit: Susan Poulton The tow vehicle, beeping while moving backward, tugged Discovery into place in… -
The Story in the Details: Space Shuttle Gigapan
16 Apr 2012 | 2:30 pmThe interior areas of a space shuttle orbiter are remarkably small. A quick tour is all it takes to experience every inch of the living space a group of astronauts would inhabit for up to 17 days in orbit. When prepared for launch and full of scientific equipment and living supplies, sharing that area with six others seems almost unimaginable. But so does taking a one thousand-image photograph. (See: “Space Shuttle in Extreme Detail: Exclusive New Pictures“) I wanted to photographically capture that area three-dimensionally in a way that only astronauts had experienced. Not one… -
Great Time to Spot the Space Station
16 Apr 2012 | 9:41 amSkywatchers across most of North America and Europe are getting a chance to see the manned International Space Station (ISS) make a series of very bright flybys in the evening sky over the next couple of weeks. As long as you have some clear skies through the 26th, the orbiting laboratory will appear as a bright white star traversing the overhead sky in a matter of 2 to 5 minutes. For the past decade the ISS has been constantly manned and currently has six astronauts onboard. Since the end of the shuttle progtram the Russian Soyuz spacecraft has been the the main resupply vehicle and…
