Remains of lost arctic explorers identified with DNA, nearly two centuries later

NPR | By Henry Larson,

Michael Levitt

Published May 24, 2026 at 5:06 PM EDT

New research shines a light on the lost Franklin Expedition, a 19th century voyage to the Canadian Arctic gone awry.

Henry Larson

Michael Levitt

Michael Levitt is a news assistant for All Things Considered who is based in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from UCLA with a B.A. in Political Science. Before coming to NPR, Levitt worked in the solar energy industry and for the National Endowment for Democracy in Washington, D.C. He has also travelled extensively in the Middle East and speaks Arabic.

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