Eyewitness Iraq
By Mike Edwards
Photographs by Michael Yamashita

Oil-rich Iraq has spent a fortune on war, but the country’s treasure—among the largest petroleum reserves in the world—has brought neither peace nor prosperity for the Iraqi people.

Tiger Sharks
Article and photographs by Bill Curtsinger

A feathered feast awaits the big predators in Hawaii when fledgling albatrosses take to sea.

Frozen in Time
By Johan Reinhard
Photographs by Maria Stenzel

Three 500-year-old mummies unearthed on a 22,000-foot [6,700-meter] peak in the Andes tell an extraordinary story of Inca worship and child sacrifice.

• Related Web Site: Three Inca Mummies Found on Volcano in Argentina
Relive the find through exclusive video.

Panama’s Rite of Passage
By Lewis M. Simons
Photographs by Alex Webb

When the United States hands over the Panama Canal in December, Panama will be without its biggest benefactor and on its own for the first time.

• Was the U.S. presence in Panama a boon or a bane? Read the complete story and share your thoughts in our forum.

African Marriage Rituals
Article and photographs by Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher

Draped in silver or intricate bead jewelry, brides follow age-old traditions in elaborate wedding ceremonies from Morocco to South Africa.

• Related Web Site: Vanishing Cultures Photo Gallery
In the Ariaal section of this site, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC photographs depict marriage rituals and more.

Feathers for T. rex?
By Christopher P. Sloan
Photographs by O. Louis Mazzatenta

Spectacular fossil finds from China and Mongolia provide important new links between birds and their dinosaur predecessors.

After the Deluge
By A. R. Williams
Photographs by Vincent J. Musi

Already sodden at the end of the rainy season, Central America was ripe for disaster when Hurricane Mitch struck last fall. Survivors recall the deadliest tempest in two centuries.

• Read excerpts of this story online. For the complete version, subscribe today.

• The water may have receded, but the victims of this storm still suffer. To help, check for relief agencies at www.interaction.pair.com/mitch

(NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC does not endorse any of the agencies.)

Cheetahs—Ghosts of the Grasslands; Florida Keys: Paradise With Attitude; Ancient Greece, Echoes of the Heroic Age; Geographic Century; The Brothers Grimm; Survey 2000