Several private companies are designing space stations that may eventually orbit Earth. (Axiom Space / Northrop Grumman / Orbital Reef / Voyager Space)

The ISS Will Fall From the Sky After the End of the Decade. What Will Replace It?

As NASA plans to retire the orbiting laboratory, these four privately owned and operated space stations are under development

Will Sullivan

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Winter Rains Bring Mushroom Boom in California

Announcing the Winners of Smithsonian Magazine’s 20th Annual Photo Contest

Were Scientists Duped by a Plastic Shark Toy?

FROM THE ARCHIVES

When Niagara Falls Ran Dry

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The Enduring Influence of Hokusai's 'Great Wave'

How Dairy Farmers Are Turning Manure Into Money

SMITHSONIAN VOICES

How To Take a Product Line on the Road in the Early 20th Century

The Live Oak Tree Has Withstood the Ravages of History

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These Flesh-Eating Bacteria Are Thriving Because of Climate Change

Fish May Sense Each Other's Fear

The Most Enigmatic Works in Art History

Ai Weiwei Unveils Recreation of Monet's 'Water Lilies' Made Entirely of Legos

On this day in 1990, track and field athlete Jesse Owens was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. Owens, the grandson of enslaved laborers, is known for winning four gold medals at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin—and event Adolf Hitler had hoped would support his beliefs about the Aryan race’s superiority.

Learn more about the history behind Owens’ feat.

Windblown

© Henry Huey