2019 January – June

Who's Out There?

The big existential question is no longer, Is there life beyond Earth? It's a pretty sure bet there is. The question now is, How do we find who - or what - is alive out there? And we are getting really close to answering it.

No Way Out

Criminal gangs have fractured El Salvador.

Borneo's Vast Underworld

Malaysia's Mulu caves boast chambers that are millions of years old.

Treehoppers

These mini-monsters are masters of disguise.

Rituals of Rebellion

The Americas' carnivals honor revelers' roots.

Conjuring Clouds

With water vapor, smoke, lights, and imagination, a Dutch artist makes clouds in unexpected places - and coaxes them to pose for the camera.

A Wake-Up Call on Water Quality

One-quarted of Americans drink water from systems that aren't safe.

Safer. Cheaper. Greener.

Engineer Leslie Dewan wants to reinvent nuclear energy.

Evolved to Crack

Scientists are learning more about how elephants get the creases in their skin and why those crevices are so important to them.

Strange Reflections

During the annual flood season in Venice, buildings appear as distorted images on water. Within those reflections, a photographer finds bizarre creatures - and also solace.

Wildlife Tourism

It's a lucrative part of the booming global travel industry, fueled by social media users' love of posing with exotic animals. But what wildlife tourist attractions do to amuse humans can have brutal consequences for animals.

Pangolins

The mammal is killed for its scales and meat.

The Brave Ones

These women rangers are shaking up the conservation landscape.

Pacific Ring of Fire

This 25,000-mile-long hot zone threatens growing populations.

Seaweed That Feeds

A stunning array of life fills the Sargasso Sea.

On Hallowed Beaches

Over the decades, a photographer has returned to the shores of Normandy to capture a place forever defined by war.

The Search of the Kissing Bug

Through some 300,000 people in the U.S. have this parasitic infection, many don't know it.

Ma Jun

He gives people in China the power to fight pollution.

Trek to the Deep

In Vietnam, jungle and leeches greet hikers venturing into two of Earth's largest caves.

Where Reptiles Rule

In a paradise on an isolated coral atoll, a phorographer discovers he's just part of the ecosystem.