National Geographic is an American magazine that is noted for its cover stories and accompanying photography. [1] [2] [3] Throughout the 1990s National Geographic's cover stories showcased global historical events such as the Exxon Valdez oil spill. [4] Cover stories included articles written by notable writers such as Joel Swerdlow, [5] Paul Theroux [6] and Paul F. Salopek. [7] Cover photos were published by notable photographers such as David Doubilet, [8] James Nachtwey [9] and Frans Lanting. [10]
The 1990s saw articles written and photographed at locations around the globe featuring marine life like the February 1994 issue titled "Sea Turtles: In a Race for Survival", written by Anne and Jack Rudloe with a photo on the cover of a Sea turtle, photographed by Bill Curtsinger. [11] Articles featured on the cover of the magazine also included human-interest stories such as "1491: America Before Columbus", photographed by Jack Unruh featuring the Iroquois Native Americans in the October 1991 issue. [12] Many geographical locations were featured including Petra, an archaeological city in Jordan, in the December 1998 article "Petra: Ancient City of Stone", written by Don Belt with photographs by Annie Griffiths. [13]
In the August 1991 issue, Thomas Y. Canby wrote the cover story titled "The Persian Gulf: After the Storm", writing about the Kuwaiti oil fires after the Persian Gulf War. The photo on the cover of the magazine featured a picture of oil fields on fire, photographed by Steve McCurry. [14]
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska's Big Spill | January 1990 | Bryan Hodgson | Natalie Fobes | Oil spill covering a guillemot | |
| Between Monterey Tides | February 1990 | Rick Gore | David Doubilet | Harbor seal | |
| Siberia in from the Cold | March 1990 | Mike Edwards | Steve Raymer | Nenet woman chopping wood | |
| A Personal Vision of Vanishing Life | April 1990 | Staff writer c | James Balog | Orangutan | |
| Growing up in East Harlem | May 1990 | Jere Van Dyk | Joseph Rodriguez | East Harlem resident | |
| Austin | June 1990 | Elizabeth A. Moize | Michael O'Brien | Austin teenage prom dates | |
| Florida Watershed | July 1990 | Nicole Duplaix | Farrell Grehan | Great egret | |
| Yugoslavia: A House Much Divided | August 1990 | Kenneth C. Danforth | Steve McCurry | Albanian family | |
| Track of the Manila Galleons | September 1990 | Eugene Lyons | Sisse Brimberg | Chinese girl in a dress | |
| Suruga Bay: In the Shadow of Mount Fuji | October 1990 | David Doubilet | David Doubilet | Lionfish | |
| The Baltic Nations | November 1990 | Priit Vesilind | Larry C. Price | cleaner on Statue of Stalin | |
| Botswana | December 1990 | Frans Lanting | Frans Lanting | Hippopotamus |
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northwest Australia: The Land & the Sea | January 1991 | Harvey Arden | Sam Abell | Australian rancher family | |
| Hong Kong: Countdown to 1997 | February 1991 | Ross Terrill | Jodi Cobb | Child in refugee camp | |
| Lechuguilla Cave | March 1991 | Tim Cahill | Michael Nichols | Lechuguilla Cave | |
| A Season in the Minors | April 1991 | David Lamb | William Albert Allard | El Paso Diablos | |
| Elephants: Out of Time, Out of Space | May 1991 | Douglas H. Chadwick | Frans Lanting | Elephant | |
| East Europe's Dark Dawn | June 1991 | Jon Thompson | James Nachtwey | Romanian boys | |
| The Wyeth Family | July 1991 | Richard Meryman | N. C. Wyeth | Treasure Island cover | |
| The Persian Gulf: After the Storm | August 1991 | Thomas Y. Canby | Steve McCurry | Kuwaiti oil fires | |
| A Shameful Harvest | September 1991 | Constance J. Poten | José Azel | Red fox pups | |
| 1491: America Before Columbus | October 1991 | Not stated d | Jack Unruh | Iroquois leader | |
| Zaire River | November 1991 | Robert Caputo | Robert Caputo | Young Zaire fisherman | |
| Ibn Battuta: Prince of Travelers | December 1991 | Thomas A. Abercrombie | James L. Stanfield | Veiled Islamic woman |
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Search for Columbus | January 1992 | Eugene Lyon | Bob Sacha | ||
| Bittersweet Success: Eastern Wildlife | February 1992 | James Conaway | Raymond Gehman | ||
| A Curious Kinship: Apes and Humans | March 1992 | Eugene Linden | Michael Nichols | Frodo (Chimpanzee) | |
| Good Luck City: Vancouver | April 1992 | Andrew Ward | Annie Griffiths Belt | Beluga whale in aquarium | |
| India's Wildlife Dilemma | May 1992 | Geoffrey C. Ward | Raghu Rai | Tiger | |
| Russia's Baikal: The World's Great Lake | June 1992 | Don Belt | Sarah Leen | Russian child sledding on Lake Baikal | |
| Mountain Lions | July 1992 | Maurice G. Hornocker | Jim Dutcher | Mountain Lion cub | |
| Struggle of the Kurds | August 1992 | Christopher Hitchens | Ed Kashi | Kurd woman | |
| Dolphins in Crisis | September 1992 | Kenneth S. Norris | Flip Nicklin | Spotted dolphins | |
| Our Disappearing Wetlands | October 1992 | John G. Mitchell | Mark Wilson | American bullfrog | |
| The Sense of Sight | November 1992 | Michael E. Long | Joe McNally | Human eye | |
| Crucibles of Creation: Volcanoes | December 1992 | Noel Grove | Roger Ressmeyer | Kīlauea volcano |
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dinosaurs | January 1993 | Rick Gore | John Gurche | Saurolophus | |
| Newborn Panda in the Wild | February 1993 | Lu Zhi | Lu Zhi | Giant panda cub | |
| A Broken Empire | March 1993 | Mike Edwards | Gerd Ludwig | Stalin statue blindfolded | |
| Andrew Aftermath | April 1993 | Rick Gore | Joel Sartore | Hurricane Andrew soldier with boy | |
| Middle East Water: Critical Resource | May 1993 | Priit J. Vesilind | Ed Kashi | ||
| Hanging in the Balance: Chesapeake Bay | June 1993 | Tom Horton | Robert W. Madden | Chesapeake Bay boy leaping on dock | |
| Lightning: Natures High Voltage Spectacle | July 1993 | William R. Newcott | Thomas Ives | Lightning | |
| Tragedy Strikes the Horn of Africa | August 1993 | Robert Caputo | Robert Caputo | Somali woman with pale | |
| India's Rabari | September 1993 | Robyn Davidson | Dilip Mehta | Indian child with camel | |
| Labrador | October 1993 | Robert M. Poole | Richard Olsenius | Canadian boy smiling | |
| The Red Sea | November 1993 | David Doubilet | David Doubilet | Emperor angelfish | |
| Glass: Capturing the Dance of Light | December 1993 | William S. Ellis | James L. Amos | Glass with gold sparkles |
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Macaws | January 1994 | Charles A. Munn | Frans Lanting | Macaw bird eating fruit | |
| Sea Turtles: In a Race for Survival | February 1994 | Anne and Jack Rudloe | Bill Curtsinger | Sea turtle swimming | |
| Shanghai | March 1994 | William S. Ellis | Stuart Franklin | Shanghai bicyclists | |
| The Everglades: Dying for Help | April 1994 | Alan Mairson | Chris Johns | Newborn alligators | |
| Turkey | May 1994 | Thomas B. Allen | Reza | Turkish woman dancing | |
| Powwow | June 1994 | Michael Parfit | David Alan Harvey | Native American family | |
| Recycling | July 1994 | Noel Grove | Jose Azel | Recycling mill with worker | |
| Lions of Darkness | August 1994 | Dereck Joubert | Beverly Joubert | Lion with killed Zebra | |
| Ireland | September 1994 | Richard Conniff | Sam Abell | Irish children with horse | |
| Our National Parks | October 1994 | John G. Mitchell | Kurt E. Smith | Mount Rainier National Park | |
| Buffalo: Back Home on the Range | November 1994 | Bryan Hodgson | Sarah Leen | Bisons at Yellowstone | |
| Animals at Play | December 1994 | Stuart L. Brown | Mitsuaki Iwagō | Japanese macaque |
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grey Reef Sharks | January 1995 | Bill Curtsinger | Bill Curtsinger | Grey reef shark | |
| Maya Masterpiece Revealed at Bonampak | February 1995 | Mary Miller |
| Maya art | |
| Dead or Alive: The Endangered Species Act | March 1995 | Douglas H. Chadwick | Joel Sartore | Red wolf pup in net | |
| The New Saigon | April 1995 | Tracy Dahlby | Karen Kasmauski | Vietnamese bride to be | |
| The Vimy Flies Again | May 1995 | Peter McMillan | James L. Stanfield | ||
| Quiet Miracles of the Brain | June 1995 | Joel Swerdlow | Joe McNally | Human brain | |
| Ndoki: Last Place on Earth | July 1995 | Douglas Chadwick | Michael Nichols | African forest elephant | |
| Sicily | August 1995 | Jane Vessels | Robert Albert Ward | Sicilian actress | |
| Hawaii's Vanishing Species | September 1995 | Elizabeth Royte | Chis Johns | ʻIʻiwi bird | |
| Threatened by War | October 1995 | Paul F. Salopek | Michael Nichols | Mountain gorilla | |
| Diminishing Returns | November 1995 | Michael Parfit | Robb Kendrick | Skipjack tuna | |
| Jane Goodall | December 1995 | Peter Miller | Michael Nichols |
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Neandertals | January 1996 | Rick Gore | Kenneth Garrett | Neandertal skull | |
| Into the Heart of Glaciers | February 1996 | Not stated c | Carsten Peter | Greenland glacier | |
| Emperors of the Ice | March 1996 | Glen Oeland | Frans Lanting | Emperor penguins | |
| Storming the Tower | April 1996 | Alan Mairson | Bill Hatcher | ||
| Dinosaur Eggs | May 1996 | Philip J. Currie | Louie Psihoyos | Dinosaur egg | |
| Australia's Cape York Peninsula | June 1996 | Cathy Newman | Sam Abell | Aboriginal Australian | |
| A Place for Parks in the New South Africa | July 1996 | Douglas H. Chadwick | Chris Johns | Mother Leopard and cub | |
| Emerging Mexico | August 1996 | Not stated c | Tomasz Tomaszewski | Mexican worshipers | |
| Hawk High Over Four Corners | September 1996 | T. H. Watkins | Adriel Heisey | Monument Valley | |
| African Gold | October 1996 | Carol Beckwith | African woman wearing Jewellery | ||
| The Astronomer's' View of Home: Orbit | November 1996 | Jay Apt | NASA | ||
| Genghis Khan | December 1996 | Mike Edwards | James L. Stanfield | Bronze Plaque of Genghis Khan |
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beneath the Tasman Sea | January 1997 | David Doubilet | David Doubilet | Sawshark | |
| Siberian Tigers | February 1997 | Mike Edwards | Mark Moritsch | Siberian tiger | |
| Bearded Seals | March 1997 | Kit Kovacs | Flip Nicklin | Bearded seal | |
| Hubble's Eye on the Universe | April 1997 | William R. Newcott |
| Dying sun | |
| India Turning Fifty | May 1997 | Geoffrey C. Ward | Steve McCurry | Indian woman | |
| French Polynesia | June 1997 | Peter Benchley | David Doubilet | Tahitian woman | |
| Robot Revolution | July 1997 | Curt Suplee | George Steinman | Robot | |
| Malaysia's Secret Realm | August 1997 | Mattias Klum | Mattias Klum | Silvered leaf monkey | |
| China's Three Gorges | September 1997 | Arthur Zich | Bob Sacha | Chinese boatman | |
| Zambezi | October 1997 | Paul Theroux | Chris Johns | Luvale children drumming | |
| North Woods Journal | November 1997 | Jim Brandenburg | Jim Brandenburg | Mallard ducks | |
| Wild Tigers | December 1997 | Geoffrey C. Ward | Michael Nichols | Tigress and her cub |
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Making Sense of the Millennium | January 1998 | Joel Swerdlow | George Steinmetz | Sahara Desert | |
| Queen Maud Land | February 1998 | Jon Krakauer | Gordon Wiltsie | Kubus Mountain | |
| Planet of the Beatles | March 1998 | Douglas H. Chadwick | Mark W. Moffett | Longhorn beetle | |
| The Vanishing Prairie dog | April 1998 | Michael E. Long | Raymound Gehman | Prairie dog | |
| Unlocking the Climate Puzzle | May 1998 | Curt Suplee | Joanna B. Pinneo | Tuareg family in the shade | |
| Trans-Siberian Railroad | June 1998 | Fen Montaigne | Gerd Ludwig | Russian man | |
| Dinosaurs Take Wings | July 1998 | Jennifer Ackerman | O. Louis Mazzatenta | Feathered dinosaur | |
| Return to Mars | August 1998 | William R. Newcott | NASA | Sojourner (rover) | |
| Valley of the Kings | September 1998 | Kent R. Weeks | Kenneth Garrett | King Tut Alabaster | |
| Population | October 1998 | Joel L. Swerdlow | Karen Kasmauski | Bangladesh mother and child | |
| Maui's Monster Waves: Jaws | November 1998 | Joel Achenbach | Patrick McFeeley | Laird Hamilton surfing | |
| Petra: Ancient City of Stone | December 1998 | Don Belt | Annie Griffiths Belt | Petra |
| Title a | Date | Author | Photographer | Images b | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coral Eden | January 1999 | David Doubilet | David Doubilet | ||
| Biodiversity: The Fragile Web | February 1999 | Joel L. Swerdlow | Frans Lanting | Australian Spadefoot frog | |
| El Niño/La Niña | March 1999 | Curt Suplee | NASA | Hurricane Linda | |
| Return to the Battle of Midway | April 1999 | Thomas B. Allen | David Doubilet | World War II planes | |
| Africa's Wild Dogs | May 1999 | Richard Conniff | Chris Johns | African wild dogs | |
| Cuba | June 1999 | John J. Putman | Alan Harvey | Cuban boy in car | |
| Iran: Testing the Waters of Reform | July 1999 | Fen Montaigne | Alexandra Avakian | Iranian woman | |
| Global Culture | August 1999 | Joel L. Swerdlow | Joe McNally | Fashion Model and her mother in India | |
| Around at Last | September 1999 | Bertrand Piccard | Breitling SA | Breitling Orbiter 3 | |
| Secrets of the Gene | October 1999 | James Shreeve | Karen Kasmauski | Genetically engineered pig | |
| Inca Sacrifice | November 1999 | Johan Reinhard | Maria Stenzel | Inca gold figurine | |
| Cheetahs | December 1999 | Richard Conniff | Chris Johns | Cheetah and her cub |