Brazil

Boats, lights and fog help create a serene nighttime scene in Rio de Janeiro.

Bask in the Beauty of Brazil With These 15 Stunning Photographs

These selections from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest images capture this South American paradise

A track of dinosaur footprints preserved in floodplain deposits in Brazil. The tracks date to around 120 million years ago.

'Matching' Dinosaur Footprints Discovered in Africa and South America

The fossils show how dinosaurs may have crossed between landmasses around 120 million years ago, when the continents were still connected

Maletsunyane Falls in the Lesotho Highlands shows how a river can erode deep valleys into uplifted lands.

Slow-Motion Ripples in Earth's Mantle Built Mysterious and Stunning Highland Landscapes, Study Finds

Following the break-up of an ancient supercontinent, waves propagated through the hot, rocky layer beneath the planet's brittle crust and reshaped its surface over millions of years

PaleoScan operates at Plácido Cidade Nuvens Museum of Paleontology (known by the Portuguese abbreviation MPPCN) in Brazil. For a typical procedure, multiple fossils are placed together on the calibration board to be scanned simultaneously.

This Innovative Device Allows South American Paleontologists to Share Fossils With the World

PaleoScan offers scientists at far-flung institutions a less expensive way to digitize their collections and preserve at-risk specimens of fish, turtles, pterosaurs and more

The Brazilian sharpnose sharks were purchased from fishers between September 2021 and August 2023.

Thirteen Sharks Test Positive for Cocaine Off the Coast of Brazil

All of the wild Brazilian sharpnose sharks tested in a new study had the drug in their bodies, but many questions remain about cocaine's effects on aquatic creatures—and the humans who eat them

A pterosaur cranium fossil is among the donated artifacts that will be on display and studied behind the scenes when the museum reopens in 2026.

More Than 1,000 Fossils, Including Rare Dinosaurs, Gifted to Brazil's National Museum Following Fire

The massive donation was made by Burkhard Pohl, a Swiss-German collector, as the museum works to replenish its collections after a devastating blaze in September 2018

The rock art was discovered in the Jalapão region, located in the east of Tocantins, Brazil.

Archaeologists Discover 2,000-Year-Old Rock Art in Brazil

Recurring symbols across 16 sites suggest that many of the artworks were created by the same cultural group

A Brazilian flea toad sits on a Brazilian real. The coin is 27 millimeters across.

The World's Smallest Vertebrate Is a Tiny Brazilian Frog, Study Finds

Adult male Brazilian flea toads are just over 7 millimeters long on average, and females measure about 8.15 millimeters

In 18th-century Venice, Carnival masks created a temporary feeling of equality between the ruling class and the lower classes.

A Brief History of How Carnival Is Celebrated Around the World

Here’s how Venice, Rio de Janeiro, Trinidad and Tobago, New Orleans, and Quebec City mark the pre-Lenten season

A 2,000-year-old human skeleton found at the Jabuticabeira II burial site in Brazil.

DNA From 2,000-Year-Old Skeletons Hints at the Origins of Syphilis

In contrast to a common theory, new findings suggest Columbus-led expeditions may not have transported syphilis to Europe from the Americas, though they cannot disprove the claim with certainty

Almost like an arrow, the somewhat triangular shape of the architectural framework points this pedestrian in the right direction.

Appreciate Awesome Architecture With These 15 Photos

No passport is needed for this virtual tour of beautiful buildings around the world

A historic drought in the Amazon has revealed faces carved in the rocky banks of the Rio Negro in Brazil.

Drought Exposes Ancient Rock Carvings in Brazil

Revealed by receding Amazon waters, the carvings of human faces are up to 2,000 years old

Researchers are still trying to confirm the cause of death, but they suspect the high water temperatures are to blame.

At Least 125 River Dolphins Have Died Amid Drought and Heat in Brazilian Amazon

Though the pink animals' cause of death is not confirmed, temperatures in the remote Lake Tefé reached 102 degrees Fahrenheit in late September

Using satellite-based datasets from 2003 to 2017, a new study identified significant decreases in average rainfall in Southeast Asia, as well as the Amazon and the Congo.

Deforestation Is Linked to Lower Rainfall, Study Says

The Amazon rainforest and other tropical regions face drying climates due to loss of trees

Theodore Roosevelt, right, and Cândido Rondon, second from right, led the fateful mission to map an uncharted waterway and document natural wonders.

Teddy Roosevelt’s Perilous Expedition on the Amazon

The dangerous—yet victorious—trip wouldn’t have been possible without Cândido Rondon, an icon of Brazilian history

Large-scale production of green hydrogen is seen as an alternative to the use of fossil fuels in the coming decades. Latin America is well-positioned to play a large part in this new industry and already has several projects in the works.

Can Green Hydrogen Help Power Latin America?

In anticipation of future demand, several projects are underway in the region to produce this clean energy source

Purple martins perch on a branch in the Brazilian Amazon.

Why Are Purple Martins Declining in the United States?

Mercury contamination in their Amazonian wintering grounds may play a role

A dolphin giving a cue to a fisher in Laguna, Brazil.

Dolphins and Humans Work Together to Catch Fish in Brazil

The partnership has endured for some 150 years, and it benefits both species, a new study finds

A painting at Brazil's National Congress that was damaged during the attacks

Rioters Damage Art at Government Buildings in Brazil

The government has released a list of artworks that were harmed during the attacks

Fires burn in the Amazon rainforest in northern Brazil on August 31, 2022. 

Wildfires Reached a Five-Year High in the Brazilian Amazon

Rapid deforestation has made the rainforest more vulnerable to flames, experts say

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