Loggerhead sea turtles laid a record 4,292 nests on Georgia beaches in 2026, up from just 358 in 2004. Here’s how volunteers, night patrols, and a clever fishing-net escape hatch helped.
Arizona released 43 endangered black-footed ferrets in 2026. Here is how a ranch dog, 18 last survivors, and even a cloned ferret got this species back on the prairie.
By 1990, only about a dozen pairs of Great Lakes piping plovers were left. In 2026, 99 pairs nested on all five Great Lakes and a record 184 chicks took flight.
In spring 2026, a NOAA ship crew and technical divers outplanted propagated mesophotic corals on seafloor habitat still healing from the Deepwater Horizon spill — and photographed every step.
In April 2026, Artemis II became the first crewed lunar flyby in more than 50 years. NASA’s public-domain images from the voyage are as stunning as the milestone itself.
In February 2026, a historic cold snap left green turtles floating helpless in St. Joseph Bay. NOAA and partners pulled more than 600 to safety — and brought most of them home.
Near Point Lay, Iḷisaġvik intern Violet Anniskett saw a walrus carcass move — and found orphaned calf Annautaq. True story with authentic USGS public-domain photos.