Overheard at National Geographic

For centuries, the Northwest Passage, the long-sought sea route connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through northern Canada, was a holy grail of Arctic exploration. Even now, sailing through it isn’t guaranteed. Mark Synnott, a National Geographic Explorer, writer, and adventurer, attempted to sail his own boat through the Northwest Passage to retrace the doomed 1845 expedition of British explorer Sir John Franklin. None of the Franklin expedition’s 129 men made it home, but what exactly happened remains a mystery. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Get the inside scoop on Mark’s Northwest Passage voyage and see gorgeous photos in the August issue of National Geographic. Watch Explorer: Lost in the Arctic, premiering August 24 on National Geographic and streaming the next day on Disney+ and Hulu. And to go even deeper, Mark will tell the full story in his book Into the Ice, coming fall 2024 from Dutton, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group. Also explore: On…

There’s a lost continent waiting to be explored, and it’s right below our feet. We’ll dig into the deep human relationship to the underground—and why we understand it from an instinctive point of view, but not so much from a physical one. (Hint: We’re afraid of the dark.) In an episode originally published November 2021, National Geographic photographer Tamara Merino will take us subterranean in Utah, Australia, and Spain, where modern-day cave dwellers teach us how to escape the heat. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Go below ground with National Geographic Explorer Tamara Merino to see how these communities have been living—quite comfortably—for a very long time. In Vietnam photojournalist and National Geographic Explorer Martin Edström created 360 images of the world’s largest cave, Son Doong. It’s so big that a forest grows inside of it. Ever zip-line to a remote island? Cartographers did, 30 miles west of San Francisco. What did they see when they mapped the…

For decades, the U.S. government evangelized fire suppression, most famously through Smokey Bear’s wildfire prevention campaign. But as climate change continues to exacerbate wildfire seasons and a growing body of scientific research supports using fire to fight fire, Indigenous groups in the Klamath Basin are reviving cultural burning practices that effectively controlled forest fires for centuries. In an episode originally published June 2022, National Geographic photographer Kiliii Yüyan introduces us to people bringing back this cultural practice and teaching the next generation how to use fire. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? If you want to hear more from Kiliii, you can also listen to a previous Overheard episode where he shares stories from the many weeks he spent camping on sea ice with Native Alaskan whale hunters. And if you’re dying to see his photography, check out his website to see portraits of Indigenous people, Arctic wildlife, and more. Also…

National Geographic Explorer Tara Roberts is inspired by the stories of the Clotilda, a ship that illegally arrived in Mobile, Alabama, in 1860, and of Africatown, created by those on the vessel—a community that still exists today. The archaeologists and divers leading the search for the Clotilda lay out the steps it took to find it. In this last episode of the Into the Depths podcast, which published in March 2022, Tara talks to the living descendants of those aboard the ship. She admires their enormous pride in knowing their ancestry, and wonders if she can trace her own ancestors back to a ship. She hires a genealogist and visits her family’s small hometown in North Carolina. The surprising results bring a sense of belonging to a place that she never could have imagined. Want more? Check out our Into the Depths hub to listen to all six episodes, learn more about Tara’s journey following Black scuba divers, find previous Nat Geo coverage on the search for slave shipwrecks, and read the March 2022 cover…

Sound on! From conch shells to bone flutes, humans have been making musical instruments for tens of thousands of years. What did prehistoric music sound like? In an episode originally published in November 2021, follow us on a journey to find the oldest musical instruments and combine them into one big orchestra of human history. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want More? A conch is more than just a musical instrument. A mollusk lives in that shell, and it’s a staple food in the Bahamas—so much so that overfishing is threatening their existence, but a few simple solutions may solve the problem. The oldest musical instrument was once thought to be a cave bear bone flute made by Neanderthals, but recent evidence suggests that the holes were made by animals rather than tools. More information about each instrument: The organization First Sounds found and brought to life the recordings of Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville. Head to their website to learn more about that project.…

Blood-sucking villains. Spooky specters of the night. Our views of bats are often based more on fiction than fact. Enter National Geographic Explorer at Large Rodrigo Medellín, aka the Bat Man of Mexico. For decades, he’s waged a charm offensive to show the world how much we need bats, from the clothes we wear to a sip of tequila at the end of a long day. The COVID-19 pandemic caused even more harmful bat myths and gave Medellín the biggest challenge of his career. In this episode originally published in 2021, learn why the world must once again realize that bats may not be the hero everyone wants—but they’re the hero we need. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? See how Rodrigo uses a multi-pronged approach—involving field research, conservation, and tequila—to help protect bats. In a Nat Geo short film, Rodrigo ventures into an ancient Mayan ruin to find two rare species of vampire bat. Curious about the connection between bats and Covid-19? Explore why it’s so…

Why would a scientist brave the stench of a car full of rotting meat on a 120-degree day? What can a unique whistling language teach us about humans’ connection to the natural world? And how does queer identity shape the research of National Geographic Explorers? In this episode celebrating Pride, we hand the mic to two Explorers: Christine Wilkinson, who studies hyenas and other large carnivores and created the TikTok series “Queer is Natural,” and Rüdiger Ortiz-Álvarez, whose soundscapes from the Canary Islands encourage us to slow down and listen to the world around us. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Why do some people prefer LGBTQIA+ instead of LGBT? See how society’s understanding of diverse sexual identities and gender expressions has grown more inclusive—and so has the acronym used to describe them. Before the Nazis rose to power, a German institute cemented itself as gay liberation’s epicenter. Discover the great hunt for the world's first LGBTQ archive.…

For centuries, Mexican gray wolves roamed the Southwest. But as cattle ranches spread, wolves became enemy number one, and by the 1970s the subspecies was nearly extinct. But after the Endangered Species Act was passed, the U.S. embarked on an ambitious plan to save the iconic predators. We’ll meet the Texas trapper who switched from killing wolves to catching them to breed. And we’ll follow a team of biologists into the Gila Wilderness to introduce captive-born wolf pups into the wild. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Check out Peter Gwin's feature article on the Gila wilderness. Thinking of visiting the Gila yourself? We've put together a travel guide for you. Also Explore In 2021, a Mexican wolf named Mr. Goodbar crossed the border from Mexico into the United States, raising questions about how the border wall will affect animal migration. The Gila wilderness is also famous for one of the only venomous lizards in the world, the Gila monster. But climate change…

On assignment in the canyons of the Gila Wilderness, Nat Geo photographer Katie Orlinsky has a fireside chat with Overheard host Peter Gwin about telling stories through pictures. She chronicles how she found her way—from growing up in New York City to covering workers' rights in rural Mexico to the world’s most grueling dogsled race in Alaska. For more information on this episode, visit nationalgeographic.com/overheard. Want more? To see some of Katie's photos from the Gila, take a look at Peter Gwin's article How to visit the Gila Wilderness. In her work on the Yukon Quest sled dog race, you can see what it looks like to cross 1,000 miles of Alaska on dog power. On Katie’s personal website, you can see more images, including from her time in Juárez. Also explore: And magazine subscribers can see Katie’s photos in our recent story about thawing permafrost. Sometimes that thaw creates pockets of methane under frozen lakes that scientists test by setting on fire. That story was also featured in our podcast…

For nearly 50 years, a group of Hawaiians have been sailing on traditional voyaging canoes using the methods that early Polynesian explorers relied on to navigate the Pacific Ocean—without maps and modern instruments, and relying on the stars, ocean waves, birds, and other natural elements to guide them. We meet National Geographic Explorer Lehua Kamalu, the first woman to captain a long-distance voyage on Hōkūleʻa, a double-hulled Polynesian canoe that was built in Hawaii in the 1970s. She describes what it’s like to navigate in incredibly rough waters, what it means to keep Polynesian navigation alive in the 21st century, and about her next big adventure: a four-year circumnavigation of the Pacific Ocean. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Learn about the Polynesian Voyaging Society and their upcoming voyage, Moananuiākea, a 47-month circumnavigation of the Pacific. Read about Hōkūleʻa’s 2022 journey to Tahiti, which involved traveling 3,000 miles over three weeks.…

Most people have heard the name Anne Frank, and many have read her diary, which details her and her family’s time spent in hiding during the German occupation of Amsterdam in World War II. Less known are Miep and Jan Gies, two people who helped shelter the Frank family and preserved Anne Frank’s diary after she was captured. In this episode, Alison Leslie Gold, who co-authored Miep’s memoir, shares their history and what we can take away from their stories. And we’ll hear from the co-creators and star of the National Geographic limited series A Small Light about how anyone can step up and be a hero. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? The first episode of A Small Light is streaming now on Disney+ and Hulu. New episodes premiere Mondays on National Geographic and stream the next day. Learn more about the book Anne Frank Remembered by Miep Gies and Alison Leslie Gold. Gold also wrote Memories of Anne Frank about Anne Frank’s childhood friend Hannah Goslar and A Special…

Asian elephants have been captured and tamed by people in Southern Asia for thousands of years as war machines, beasts of burden, and part of religious festivals. It’s a practice that continues to this day, but some activists are beginning to rethink its impact on this endangered species. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want More? Check out even more coverage on elephants this month, including Secrets of the Elephants, a four-part National Geographic series streaming April 22 on Disney+. Visit NatGeo.com/elephants to learn more. Also explore: In addition to a film Sangita Iyer has also written a book, Gods in Shackles: What Elephants Can Teach Us About Empathy, Resilience, and Freedom. You can check it out as well as her other work at the website of her organization, the Voices for Asian Elephants Society. More information about Jyothy Karat and her films and photography can be found on her website. If you like what you hear and want to support more content like this, please…

As the CEO of WildlifeDirect, Paula Kahumbu has dedicated her life to saving space for wildlife to thrive in Africa and building healthy relationships between humans and wild elephants. Paula got her start in wildlife conservation by measuring Kenya’s stockpile of elephant tusks confiscated from poachers—12 tons in all. And it turns out poachers aren’t the only threat to this endangered species. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want More? Check out even more coverage on elephants this month, including Secrets of the Elephants, a four-part National Geographic series streaming April 22 on Disney+. Visit NatGeo.com/elephants to learn more. Also explore: To learn more about Paula Kahumbu and her work introducing the next generation of Kenyans to wildlife, listen to our previous episode, “Kenya’s Wildlife Warriors.” If you like what you hear and want to support more content like this, please consider a National Geographic subscription. Go to natgeo.com/exploremore to subscribe…

For almost 50 years, National Geographic Explorer Joyce Poole has been carefully watching the elephants of Kenya’s Amboseli National Park. Over that time she’s gotten to know them by name and has started decoding their sounds, smells, and body language to figure out just what the world’s largest land animal is talking about. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want More? Check out even more coverage on elephants this month, including Secrets of the Elephants, a four-part National Geographic series streaming April 22 on Disney+. Visit NatGeo.com/elephants to learn more. Also explore: Joyce Poole has a lot more to say about elephants. To learn more about her work and to hear more of the sounds she collected in the field, take a look at her website, Elephant Voices If you like what you hear and want to support more content like this, please consider a National Geographic subscription. Go to natgeo.com/exploremore to subscribe today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit…

Follow a day in the life of an astronomer searching for planets beyond our solar system as she explains how she observes Ramadan and celebrates her family’s traditions. Astronomer, astrophysicist, and National Geographic Explorer Munazza Alam is the daughter of a Pakistani father and Indian mother, and a postdoctoral researcher at the Carnegie Earth & Planets Laboratory in Washington, D.C., focusing on exoplanets. She also shares insights from co-hosting Nat Geo’s How We Explore podcast, which introduces kids to the work of National Geographic Explorers around the world. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Follow Munazza's work on her website. Find out why Ramadan is the most sacred month in Islamic culture, discover five unique traditions Muslims bring to Ramadan celebrations, and learn why these five sites are among the holiest in all of Islam. Also explore: Learn about some of the ways Muslims around the world celebrate the end of Ramadan in this Nat Geo article.…

National Geographic photographer David Guttenfelder is no stranger to dangerous situations. After graduating from college, he left his life in rural Iowa to cover the 1994 Rwandan genocide, an experience that kicked off a decades-long career of reporting on war, conflict, and major news events all around the world. But when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down travel to most countries, he took an assignment close to his roots—paddling the treacherously unpredictable waters between the Apostle Islands in Lake Superior. He describes what it was like visiting historic lighthouses and sea caves, and shares some surprising lessons he took away from that experience. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? For more on the Apostle Islands and their history, read writer Stephanie Pearson’s piece and see the stunning images David Guttenfelder captured while kayaking out there. Guttenfelder is also one of the few Westerners who has spent an extensive amount of time in North Korea. The…

Photographer Mark Thiessen, who’s worked on staff at National Geographic for over 30 years, likens his job to a Swiss army knife—versatile enough to tackle many kinds of assignments. Even when the subject is challenging, he approaches each assignment with a lot of curiosity and creativity, whether it’s shooting smoke jumpers who leap out of planes to fight wildfires or making “rain” in the studio to take a unique portrait of an Explorer. And as a special treat, Thiessen will take us up a flight of stairs from the photo studio to show us one of his favorite hobbies: beekeeping. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Follow Mark on Instagram at @Thiessenphoto. See what it takes to put out a wildfire in this Nat Geo article, and follow smokejumpers out of a plane in this article. Hear more of Mark on the Overheard episode “An Accidental Case of the Blues,” about the discovery of the first blue pigment since Thomas Jefferson was president. Also explore: Did you know that…

With 224 million people, Nigeria is Africa's most populous country. By 2050, it could crack the global top three with some 375 million people. In the second of our two-part series on the global population passing eight billion, National Geographic photographer Yagazie Emezi describes scenes she captured in Lagos, Africa’s biggest city—including intimate close-ups of a family raising four children in a one-room apartment and women receiving prenatal care. Plus, a Nigerian demographer explains how the country's soaring birth rate could make it an economic powerhouse, but only if the country finds new ways to invest in its youthful population. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? See Yagazie Emezi’s photos—and other scenes from a world with 8 billion people—in the April issue of National Geographic. For a previous National Geographic assignment, Yagazie photographed the women stepping up to remake Rwanda. Follow her on Instagram @yagazieemezi. Also explore: With a…

There are more than 8 billion humans on Earth, according to the United Nations. And for decades, China has had more people than any other country. But now, China’s population is declining. As soon as this year, it could lose its place as the most populous nation in the world. National Geographic photographer Justin Jin shares what he observed in this pivotal moment for China; he captured scenes where many young women are choosing not to have children, and instead are spending their money on doggie daycare and on karaoke nights with friends and male escorts. As we head into Women’s History Month, we’ll explore why Chinese women are taking a different path, despite the government campaigns pushing them to get married and have children. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard Want more? See Justin Jin’s photos—and other scenes from a world with 8 billion people—in the April issue of National Geographic. Earth's growing population belies vastly different types of demographic change…

This episode is part four of The Soul of Music—Overheard’s four-part series focusing on music, exploration, and Black history. Our guest this week is Meklit Hadero, a Nat Geo Explorer and Ethio-jazz musician. Meklit is the creative force behind the transmedia storytelling project Movement, which explores the intersection of migration and music. She and fellow Explorer and music producer Jahawi Bertolli talk about migration, the ancient instruments known as rock gongs, and how their music is inspired by nature. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Learn more about Meklit Hadero and the Movement project at her website meklitmusic.com. You can follow her on Twitter or Instagram @meklitmusic. Learn more about Jahawi Bertolli and his First Rock project on his website jahawi.com. You can follow him on Instagram @jahawibertolli. Check out the Overheard episode “Ancient Orchestra” to learn more about Jahawi and the sound of rock gongs. And keep listening to songs featured in…

This episode is part three of The Soul of Music—Overheard’s four-part series focusing on music, exploration, and Black history. Our guest this week is Grammy-nominated trumpeter Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah, formerly known as Christian Scott. Chief Xian sits down with National Geographic Explorer and archaeologist Justin Dunnavant to discuss Xian’s childhood in New Orleans, how he created a new instrument, and what he calls stretch music. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Learn more about Chief Xian at his website https://www.chiefadjuah.com/. And you can follow him on Instagram @christianscottofficial. You can also download his stretch music app, an interactive music player, in the Google Play store or Apple App store. Also, be sure to follow Justin online to stay updated with his latest adventures: www.justindunnavant.com or on social media @archfieldnotes. Also explore: Interested in learning more about global Black history and heritage? Follow Justin Dunnavant as he…

This episode is part two of The Soul of Music—Overheard’s four-part series focusing on music, exploration, and Black history. Our guest this week is Sampa The Great, a Zambian-born rapper, singer, and songwriter. Sampa spent most of her childhood living in Botswana, and her music career took off in Australia; but when the pandemic hit, Sampa returned home to Zambia where she recorded her album As Above, So Below. This album sees Sampa shedding her mask and getting personal. Sampa is joined by Nat Geo Explorer and wildlife biologist Danielle Lee to discuss inspiration through history, the power of language, and mental health therapy through nature. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Learn more about Sampa The Great at her website sampathegreat.com. You can follow her on Twitter or Instagram @Sampa_the_Great. Learn more about Danielle Lee at her website about.me/DNLee. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @DNLee5. Also explore: Listen to an in-depth interview with…

This episode is part one of The Soul of Music—Overheard’s four-part series focusing on music, exploration, and Black history. Our guest this week is two-time Grammy award winner Rhiannon Giddens, a singer, songwriter, and banjo and fiddle player. A self-described “armchair historian,” Rhiannon chats with Nat Geo Explorer and spoken-word poet Alyea Pierce about the origins of the banjo, her new opera Omar, and how she finds inspiration through history. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Learn more about Rhiannon and her music, opera, and children’s book at her website, rhiannongiddens.com. And you can follow her on Twitter @RhiannonGiddens. You can follow National Geographic Explorer Alyea Pierce at her instagram @alyeaspierce. Also explore: Listen to the National Geographic podcast Into the Depths to hear more of Alyea’s poetry and follow Explorer Tara Roberts on a journey to document sunken slave ships in the Atlantic. Learn about how music is used to heal the sick…

National Geographic turns 135 in 2023. In February 2023, to celebrate exploration and commemorate Black History Month, National Geographic’s flagship podcast, Overheard, will feature musicians and National Geographic Explorers in conversation on music and exploration. This is just one of many celebrations planned for this milestone anniversary. Hosted by Overheard producer Khari Douglas, these four episodes (every Tuesday in February) will feature world-famous musicians Rhiannon Giddens, Sampa the Great, Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah (formerly Christian Scott), and Meklit Hadero (also a Nat Geo explorer) in conversation with Nat Geo Explorers Alyea Pierce, Danielle Lee, Justin Dunnavant, and Jahawi Bertolli. The Explorers and artists will discuss how nature, history, and culture influence their work, what music inspires their adventures, and how they address some of the world’s most pressing and complicated issues through art and exploration. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The future is bright for origami, the centuries-old art of paper folding. In recent decades, scientists, engineers, and designers have pushed origami beyond its traditional roots and applied its patterns to fascinating technologies like foldable kayaks and tiny robots that can fit into a pill capsule. We’ll fold cranes with National Geographic writer Maya Wei-Haas, who will share the latest advancements with origami and what the future holds for this art form in science. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? We’ve just touched the surface of origami science. To go deeper, read Maya’s story in the February issue of National Geographic magazine. She talks about more applications of origami, including origami in space. Did you know that origami could be the key to making better face masks? Origami’s unique folds may be able to make face masks fit better. Check out our article exploring this possibility. Also explore Plus, grab some origami and head to the ocean. Origami…

The 1619 Project was a New York Times Magazine endeavor that explored the ways the legacy of slavery still shapes American society. The story exploded into cultural consciousness in 2019, and has since become a book, a podcast, and now, a documentary series. For the project’s creators, that meant great success, but it also meant facing pushback and surprises. We talk to journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones about how politics affected The 1619 Project and what it means to be in the middle of this social reckoning. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? The 1619 Project documentary examines how the legacy of slavery has influenced music, capitalism, and democracy itself. It premieres January 26 on Hulu. Also explore: Take a look at the original New York Times Magazine 1619 Project. It features articles, photo essays, and more that discuss how black Americans created democracy in the country, how segregation leads to traffic jams, and more. Check out the audio series that The…

Cameras that drop miles beneath the ocean surface. Handmade art that reveals the secrets of archeological sites and extinct animals. For 135 years, National Geographic has pioneered new ways of exploring and illuminating our world—and now you can meet a few of the people who make it possible. Join Nathan Lump, National Geographic’s editor in chief, and Jill Tiefenthaler, CEO of the National Geographic Society, for a tour of the cutting-edge Exploration Technology Lab and a look inside the studio where original, scientifically accurate art comes to life. Then, play along with a fun trivia game based on sounds from the National Geographic Soundbank recorded by explorers around the world. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Learn more about the people in this episode, including editor in chief Nathan Lump, National Geographic Society CEO Jill Tiefenthaler, and senior graphics editor Fernando Baptista. See how the National Geographic Exploration Technology Lab is…

Last summer, Disney Cruise Line released its fifth and most technologically advanced cruise ship yet: Disney Wish. We’ll meet Laura Cabo, a creative executive at Walt Disney Imagineering, who shares the excitement and challenges in designing a cruise ship that’s nearly as long as the Eiffel Tower, and how Imagineers turn visions into reality. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? The documentary Chad made with Laura and other Disney Imagineers is called Making the Wish: Disney’s Newest Cruise Ship. It will be available on Disney+ February 17. And while you’re there, check out the documentary series The Imagineering Story about other Imagineers all over the world. If you like what you hear and want to support more content like this, please consider a National Geographic subscription. Go to natgeo.com/exploremore to subscribe today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When Nat Geo Explorer Gibbs Kuguru was in college, he found himself trying to choose between two terrifying futures: going free diving with sharks off the coast of South Africa or, even scarier, studying for the MCAT. Since then, he’s become devoted to sharks. His genetic research has shown they can do remarkable things, like change color to become more effective predators. And he’s also become a staunch advocate for shark species as they grow more vulnerable to overfishing and the effects of climate change. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? If you want more on Gibbs’s journey and his research, check out our story about him online. Plus, we’ve also got an article about how great whites change their color to sneak up on prey. Also explore You can watch Gibbs in the National Geographic documentary Camo Sharks. He and other scientists try to catch sharks in the middle of their color changes. And if you just can’t get enough of sharks, we’ve got a whole bunch of…

For 17 years, nurse Karen Barry’s office at National Geographic headquarters has served as an important stop for journalists, photographers, and explorers in need of vaccines and medical advice before they set out on expeditions all over the globe. We’ll head down to the medical office to listen to her stories of helping explorers out in the field—and we’ll hear from one of her most frequent “customers,” Dangerous Encounters host Brady Barr, who over the years has dealt with multiple animal bites, parasites, and even a lost finger. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Here are some more tips from Nurse Karen Barry for staying safe while traveling, The snake that bit Brady Barr is an amazing creature. The reticulated python is the longest snake species in the world. They are commonly measured at 20 feet long, longer than a giraffe is tall. When isolated, female reticulated pythons are able to give virgin birth, a phenomenon biologists call parthenogenesis. Also explore:…

Scientists are hard at work trying to understand what causes aging and how to help people stay healthy for longer. Biologist Matt Kaeberlein breaks down the science of longevity and tells us how he’s using a robot to test 100,000 aging interventions a year on microscopic worms and a long-term study on the aging of pet dogs. Then we’ll leave the lab to visit Willie Mae Avery, the oldest person in Washington, D.C., to hear what it’s like to live such a long life. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want More? Matt Kaeberlein is just one of many researchers working hard to find ways to help people live healthier, longer. To learn more about the cutting-edge science about the biology and psychology of aging, take a look at our magazine feature. Also Explore We’ve also included a link to the story of how the 4,000-year-old Epic of Gilgamesh was rediscovered and deciphered. Like Gilgamesh, Chris Hemsworth is on a mission to live better for longer. With the help of top scientists, he…

Today we bring you a high-stakes story from ESPN’s 30 for 30 Podcasts—a tale of women’s rights, history, and soccer. As Iranian women took to the streets in fall 2022 to fight gender inequality, they also targeted sports. Iranian women have been banned from attending games in stadiums for more than four decades. In ESPN’s series Pink Card, creator, host, and executive producer Shima Oliaee follows Iranian women who dare to defy the ban, from protesting at the gates to sneaking into soccer games under disguise. They risk their lives to take back their stadium—and their joy in the game. Listen to all four episodes of Pink Card from 30 for 30 Podcasts. And find more stories from the edges of our big, weird, beautiful world with Overheard at National Geographic. For their widespread protests united by chants of "Woman, life, freedom," the women of Iran are Time magazine's heroes of the year. If you like what you hear and want to support more content like this, please consider a National Geographic subscription.…

National Geographic photographers seldom do their work alone, especially those who journey out to far-flung places. This week, we’re shining a light on local collaborators—people whose names don’t show up in the credit line for a photo but who are key to helping our photographers get the breathtaking shots you see with our stories. We’ll hear about their extraordinary adventures—which include fighting off an alligator to save a camera—and how they’ve helped photographers navigate and understand cultures that aren’t their own. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Want to meet more photographers and their collaborators? Take a look at Jen Tse’s article on the subject to read about other amazing collaborators in the field. Wondering why Malia Byrtus was out dealing with alligators? Florida has some amazing plants and animals. Check out writer Douglas Main’s story on Florida’s wildlife corridor to learn more about the quest to protect them. Plus, Daniella Zalcman’s…

Sure, we love bears when they show up in books or cartoons. But what if one is outside our window? Human-bear encounters are becoming far more frequent as development continues to spread and people and bears seek similar resources of food, water, and shelter. National Geographic Explorer and large-carnivore ecologist Rae Wynn-Grant dispels a few myths about bear behavior, describes what it’s like to cuddle a bear cub, and offers tips on what to do if you find a bear in your backyard—or bump into one in the wild. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? If you haven’t seen the viral Instagram video of Rae Wynn-Grant cuddling with bear cubs for science, you can watch that here. And you can keep up with her adventures with more species, like ring-tailed lemurs and African lions, on her website, raewynngrant.com. Or you can also listen to her podcast, Going Wild with Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant, where you can hear her interview fellow conservationists about their work, from studying…

In the basement of National Geographic’s headquarters, there’s a lab holding a secret tech weapon: Tom O’Brien. As Nat Geo’s photo engineer, O’Brien adapts new technologies to capture sights and sounds previously never seen or heard before. In this episode, originally published in June 2021, O’Brien leads us on a tour of his lab as he designs and builds an underwater camera and shows us some of his favorite gadgets—including a camera lens that flew over Machu Picchu in a blimp, a remote camera he designed for the film Free Solo, and a piece of gear known simply as the “funky bird train.” For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? See National Geographic's Pictures of the Year and our five picks for Photographers of the Year. To capture one of the year's best pictures—an encounter with elephants in Gabon—O'Brien outfitted a photographer with 1,100 pounds of custom gear. Our photographers capture millions of individual frames per year. In a previous episode of Overheard, Nat…

Every year, National Geographic rolls the year into a collection of photos for its “Pictures of the Year” issue. It’s a mysterious process, and we’re about to share it with you. We’ll see what baby carriages are like in Greenland, witness the moment SpaceX burst into a cypress swamp, and make a new four-legged friend as deputy director of photography Sadie Quarrier shares with us the choice photos for this year. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Interested in learning more about Kiliii Yüyan? We’ve got an article for you that explores how he became the photographer he is today. Also explore To see Mac Stone’s photos, take a look at his website, macstonephoto.com. He specializes in photographing swamps, the Everglades, and Florida Bay. Plus, Katie Orlinsky’s photos go far beyond tapirs. See some more of the photos she’s taken around the world at katieorlinskyphoto.com. For subscribers See how we summed up 2022 in the “Pictures of the Year.” It hits newsstands in…

The fictional, fearsome, and all-female Dora Milaje in the movie Black Panther: Wakanda Forever were inspired by a real group of African warriors: the Agojie. Nat Geo contributing writer Rachel Jones shares the history of the Agojie and discusses the way that movies and pop culture can shape our understanding of the world. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Learn more and check out photos of the Agojie in Rachel Jones’s article. Also, in 2019 Rachel traveled to the Democratic Republic of Congo to find out how they were combating the Ebola epidemic. Read her pieces on a new tool that some hope could uncover the lost ancestry of enslaved African Americans and on Albert José Jones, who founded the first African American scuba club and led the way for Black divers to explore the ocean—and their own history. Also explore: Watch the Dora Milaje kick butt in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, in theaters this Friday, November 11th. If you like what you hear and want to support…

National Geographic Explorer Keolu Fox grew up hearing stories about his ancestors, Polynesian navigators, and the men who in the late 1970s led the first Hōkūleʻa voyage to Tahiti. As the first Native Hawaiian with a Ph.D. in genomic sciences, Fox tells us how genetic data can help reveal powerful narratives about the history of Indigenous people and their achievements, and empower communities to use data to improve public health and preserve their culture. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Less than one percent of genome studies include Indigenous people. Watch Keolu Fox’s Ted Talk on why genetic research needs to be more diverse. Also, check out his essay in Scientific American on what genomic research could potentially reveal about the history and accomplishments of Indigenous people. Also explore: If you are working on an idea that promotes Indigenous futurism and environmental health, Keolu is collaborating with Footprint Coalition Science Engine to encourage…

National Geographic Kids' Greeking Out is a kid-friendly retelling of some of the best stories from Greek mythology. This episode, "Akhenaten The Heretic King," is all about King Tut's father and how he attempted to reset Egyptian religion and politics. You can listen to more episodes of Greeking Out on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. We'll be back next week with a regular episode of Overheard. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

One hundred years since the discovery of King Tutankhamun’s tomb, archaeologists are still puzzling over the mysteries of his mummy. Why was he covered in “black goo” and buried without a heart? And how did his tomb remain hidden for so long? To answer these questions, we head to the National Geographic Museum’s King Tut exhibit with Archaeologist in Residence Fred Hiebert to hear his take on what happened to Egypt’s boy king and hear from mummy expert Salima Ikram about how recent excavations of the tomb are helping scientists get closer to the answers. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? King Tut’s tomb is one of the most significant archaeological sites ever discovered, but it was almost never found. To learn more about the discovery, take a look at our magazine cover story about the discovery. Want to see National Geographic’s King Tut exhibit for yourself? Information and tickets can be found on the museum website. Also explore: Egyptologist Salima Ikram is one…

National Geographic Explorer in Residence Enric Sala quit academia to explore and protect the sea. On his journey to keep the ocean pristine, he has swam with jellyfish in Palau, gone diving in the Arctic, and got acquainted with sharks at Millennium Atoll. Sala’s explorations have led to 24 marine preserves—with a combined area more than twice the size of India. But the hard work is far from over, as Sala aims to protect 30 percent of the world’s oceans by 2030. Want more? Learn more about the work of Pristine Seas on their website. Learn more about the recovery of the coral reefs around the southern Line Islands in November’s National Geographic magazine. There will be an in-depth article written by Enric, with some gorgeous photographs of this pristine ecosystem. The article is also available online here. Also explore: Dive deeper with two other Overheard episodes about the ocean: In “The Secret Culture of Killer Whales,” photographer Brian Skerry swims with killer whales and discovers these apex…

In 1915 Ernest Shackleton’s ship, Endurance, sank off the coast of Antarctica, stranding the crew on drifting sea ice. Shackleton’s desperate rescue mission saved all 28 men. But for more than a century afterward, the location of Endurance eluded archaeologists—until this year. National Geographic photographer Esther Horvath was there, and recounts the moment when the ship was located 10,000 feet beneath the polar ice. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Read the inside story of the discovery of Endurance, including reactions from the lead researchers and Horvath’s photos from the farthest reaches of the Southern Ocean. See rare photos from another fabled Antarctic voyage: Robert Falcon Scott’s race to the South Pole in 1912. Also explore: Technology has made it easier to find sunken ships and their undiscovered treasures. See how preservationists protect them—and why “finders keepers” doesn’t apply. If you like what you hear and want to support more content like…

Some of the most crucial countries in the global fight against climate change are in Latin America, and yet there are few resources on the crisis for Spanish speakers. Eyal Weintraub, a 22-year-old National Geographic Young Explorer and climate activist from Buenos Aires, Argentina, is working to change that. Guest host Jordan Salama joins Weintraub to talk about his popular podcast, Lo Que Haces Cuenta, which unpacks the climate crisis in bite-sized episodes—and explores the everyday ways people can fight it. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Learn more about Eyal Weintraub by following him on Instagram @eyalwein and follow Jordan Salama @JordanSalama19. Listen to Lo Que Haces Cuenta wherever you get your podcasts. Also Explore: For more content celebrating Hispanic and Latin American Heritage Month, visit NatGeo.com/HLAHM. Listen to some other Overheard episodes that feature Latin America like “The Guerrilla Cyclists of Mexico City” and their efforts to build DIY…

Photographer Rena Effendi’s father, a Soviet entomologist, collected 90,000 butterflies in his lifetime. But there was one species he couldn’t capture—Satyrus effendi. Effendi takes on the quest to track down the endangered butterfly named after her father, but to do so, she must navigate its home territory, a conflict zone in Azerbaijan. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? To see Rena Effendi’s photography, take a look at her portfolio. Also explore. We only briefly touched on the war between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which you can read more about in Rena Effendi’s article. Through words and photos, she followed the half a million Azerbaijanis who lost their homes in the conflict. Plus, learn more about how the COVID-19 pandemic had a big effect on Armenians and Azerbaijanis already struggling with the conflict. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Go behind the yellow border to meet the family that made National Geographic an American institution. Gilbert M. Grosvenor’s 60-year career followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather—but he learned that sometimes he had to do things his own way. In his new memoir, A Man of the World, Grosvenor recounts a crucial decision that made him rethink the way National Geographic covers the world. Grosvenor also shares an unforgettable conversation with Jacques Cousteau and how he witnessed Jane Goodall’s transformation from unknown young scientist to, well, Jane Goodall. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Check out Gil Grosvenor’s new memoir, A Man of the World: My Life at National Geographic. From his first day of work in 1899, Gil’s grandfather, Gilbert H. Grosvenor, put National Geographic on the map. A behind-the-scenes photo from our archives shows Grosvenor testing a state-of-the-art camera in 1913. Gil’s commitment to environmental storytelling is now a…

In a collaboration with National Geographic television, we follow 29-year-old adventurer and filmmaker Bertie Gregory on a nail-biting journey to some of the harshest, most spectacular corners of the world. Join guest host Drew Jones as he sits down with Gregory to discuss coming face-to-face with buffalo-hunting lions in Zambia, searching for the largest gathering of whales ever filmed in Antarctica, diving in dangerous Costa Rican waters to film hammerhead sharks, and spreading the message of conservation in the face of nature’s greatest challenges. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Watch Epic Adventures with Bertie Gregory on Disney+, and check out some of the amazing photos Bertie and his crew have captured from his adventures, including his tree nest in Kasanka National Park, and swimming alongside whales with the help of an underwater scooter. Learn more about Bertie’s career as an explorer and photographer, which started with a childhood obsession with…

It’s a jewel of biodiversity, the so-called Galápagos of the Indian Ocean, and might also hold traces of the earliest humans to leave Africa. No wonder scientists want to explore Socotra. But it’s also part of Yemen, a country enduring a horrific civil war. Meet the Nat Geo explorer with a track record of navigating the world’s most hostile hot spots who’s determined to probe the island—and empower its local scientists before it’s too late. Want more? See Socotra’s wonders—including the dragon’s blood tree—through the eyes of National Geographic explorers. And check out human footprints preserved for more than 100,000 years, which could be the oldest signs of humans in Arabia. Ancient caravan kingdoms are threatened in Yemen’s civil war. Their storied legacy—including temples built by the queen of Sheba—is entwined with the fate of modern Yemenis. Read more here. Also explore: Learn more about Yemen’s civil war. One Yemeni photographer explains why she looks for points of light in the darkness. And for…

Scientists recently discovered a fascinating paradox: when they bred together superproductive, egg-laying hens, they found the chickens produced fewer eggs. We examine what went wrong with these so-called superchickens, and we look at human examples of this phenomenon—a high school Model UN team and a retail giant. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? David Sloan Wilson’s theories on competition and cooperation go far beyond superchickens. Take a look at an article he wrote about rethinking economics on Evonomics.com, a website started by one of his former students. And for more on his work, visit davidsloanwilson.world. Plus, retail has been through a lot over the last 50 years. To learn more about that world from the inside, check out his book, Remarkable Retail: How to Win and Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption, and his podcast, the Remarkable Retail Podcast. And read a Bloomberg article that goes into detail about what happened at Sears. Also explore: Darwin…

The U.S. is home to some of the most beautiful, incomparable places on the planet, from the pristine Shi Shi Beach at the Makah Reservation in Washington State to the Couturie Forest in New Orleans. But as climate change and development continue to threaten the country’s natural treasures, we explore the limits of traditional conservation and learn how innovation and Indigenous knowledge could shift how we protect the environment in the 21st century. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Learn about the Makah’s efforts to resume their practice of hunting gray whales, which was banned in the mid-1900s, in this article by Emma Marris. See even more of America’s most spectacular locations and diverse species in America the Beautiful. Hosted by Michael B. Jordan, this docuseries is now streaming on Disney+. As massive wildfires continue to wreak havoc in the American West, Indigenous people are reviving centuries-old cultural burning practices to protect their communities.…

When India and Pakistan gained their independence from Britain, a border was drawn between the two new countries. The split started a chain reaction of violence that led to one of the largest forced migrations in human history. More than 1 million people died in the tragedy. Both countries are now approaching 75 years of independence, and the people who were there to remember it are reaching their twilight years. This may be our last chance to hear directly from the eyewitnesses who lived through the victory of independence and the subsequent tragedy of partition. National Geographic Explorer Sparsh Ahuja has been documenting the stories of people who were forced from their homes during partition and is bringing them back to their ancestral home—if not in person then through virtual reality. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? To learn more about Sparsh Ahuja’s work and to hear more interviews with survivors of partition, take a look at the website for Project…