Stormy Star Our life-giving sun throws tempests that can scramble modern technology. New telescopes and satellites let scientists probe the secrets of the temperamental star. MULTIMEDIA See sunspots, solar flares, and other space weather in this series of compelling action images and computer simulations. WALLPAPER Brighten your desktop with an image of a sunspot and the blazing formation around it. FLASHBACK to June 19, 1936, when two stellar events vied for Muscovites' attention: author Maksim Gorky's death and a solar eclipse.

Cocaine Country An illegal cash crop sustains local farmers and a 40-year-old guerrilla movement in southern Colombia. MAP Download a printable, high-resolution map of a Colombian cocaine region. FORUM How can the drug trade be stopped? Enter>> SIGHTS & SOUNDS Explore the rebel-controlled cocaine growing areas of the southern Colombian jungles with photojournalist Carlos Villalón. POLL Cast your vote: Can the war on drugs be won?

Olympic National Park Cloaked in fog and drenched by rain and snowmelt, a lush sanctuary at the northwest tip of Washington State safeguards some of Earth's largest trees. MAP Download a printable, high-resolution map of this pristine haven. FORUM How can the needs of environmentalists and the timber industry be reconciled following a federal proposal to ease rules that had restricted logging in the northwest forests? Enter>> ONLINE EXTRA Learn environmentally friendly ways to experience Olympic National Park. POSTCARDS E-greet a friend with a delicate bunchberry blossom from the forest floor of Olympic National Park.

Elephant Hunt Read a special message from the Editor about our story on the Barabaig of Tanzania. FORUM Share your thoughts. Enter>>

Wind Scorpions Massive jaws, voracious appetite, and sprinters' speed attest that these aggressive desert dwellers are built to kill.

Temple of Doom In a mud-brick pyramid on the coast of Peru, elaborate reliefs tell a gory tale of human sacrifice and offer insights into the Moche culture, which vanished 500 years before the Inca.

ZipUSA: 33856 Neither rain nor heat nor gloom of night stops folks from living large at the unofficial retirement community of the National Association of Letter Carriers. NOMINATE your own wonderful, weird, or wacky choices for this magazine series. Enter>>