![The Cook islands banknote](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/image_banknote.jpeg.webp?itok=v3swQ6bS)
![Canoe hulls on a sandy shore are painted with traditional Alaskan figures.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/ocean.si.edu/sites/default/files/styles/banner_image/public/2018-05/HeaderPhoto_redesign_temp_history_culture.jpg.webp?itok=rLSm47dO)
History & Cultures
![The Cook islands banknote](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/image_banknote.jpeg.webp?itok=v3swQ6bS)
Featured Content
Are You An Educator?
At Smithsonian Ocean, we have lesson plans, activities, and resources to help you engage your students in the wonders of our oceans.
History & Cultures Articles
![Dampier explored this area of Western Australia and named it Shark Bay because of the "abundance" of sharks in the waters. It is now a World Heritage site.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/IMG_0383-main_0.jpg.webp?itok=8Jozq2hF)
article
Around the World Again...and Again
![Two men each hold a ceramic vessel at the archaeological excavation](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Fig_5_-_Frederic_Simard_and_Erik_Phanuef_display_two_ceramic_vessels_found_during_2007_underwater_Excavations.JPG.webp?itok=RE-Z3p1S)
article
Archaeologists Study Early Whaling Community in Quebec, Canada
![Master carver Douglas Chilton rides in the Raven Spirit canoe at its ceremonial launch.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Carver-Canoe_1_0.jpg.webp?itok=wVjE7K9C)
article
The Sant Ocean Hall: Salmon Shape a Way of Life
![Nuclear bomb in Bikini Atoll Nuclear bomb in Bikini Atoll](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/castle-bravo.jpg.webp?itok=7ZtAShnd)
article
Naturally Resilient
![Sea Monster A sea monster attacks a wooden ship](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Sea-Monster-39_07.jpg.webp?itok=Ioo3P9oC)
article
The Enchanting Sea Monsters on Medieval Maps
![A manatee swims in Crystal River, Florida. A manatee swims in Crystal River, Florida.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/manatee-skerry-for-web.jpg.webp?itok=Yh_CyWEi)
article
From Mermaids to Manatees: the Myth and the Reality
![An albatross soars over the ocean.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Albatrocity_05.jpg.webp?itok=D9FxiV2Q)
article
Is It Love? Why Some Ocean Animals (Sort Of) Mate For Life
![Chevrolet's Mako Shark A Chevrolet Mako Corvette](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/1966_Chevrolet_Ad-Mako_shark_II.jpg.webp?itok=2E8Lyzn4)
article
These Sleek, Sexy Cars Were All Inspired by Fish
![A narwhal breaches the surface, its tusk pointed to the sky](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/%28GW%29-narwhal-tusk.jpg.webp?itok=_6jIiUtp)
article
Why a Tusk? The real-life unicorns of the sea and the tusks that make them famous
![An arrow-worm from the genus Spadella. Alvariño discovered and classified the species Spadella gaetanoi in 1978.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/arrow_worm_alverino.jpg.webp?itok=D7eSn7da)
article
Ángeles Alvariño: Woman of Many Namesakes
![Diving at the Wreck Divers at a shipwreck site](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/divers.jpg.webp?itok=oIIP8LuT)
article
Wood Under Sand: The Search for A Slave Shipwreck
![This portrait of William Dampier hangs in London’s National Gallery in recognition of his contribution to natural history.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/014_Dampier_full_0_0.jpg.webp?itok=QH_8UL4e)
article
William Dampier - The Pirate Who Collected Plants
Banner Credit
Misty Smith