Denver Museum of Nature and Science

Education programs

The museum provides programming in six main areas. The exhibitions, IMAX films, lectures, classes, and programs pertain to one or more of the following core competencies: anthropology, geology, health science, paleontology, space science, and zoology. More than 300,000 students and teachers visit the museum with school groups each year. In addition, the museum has science outreach programs and distance–learning opportunities for families, schools and surrounding communities. The museum also offers ongoing professional training workshops for teachers.

History

In 1868, Edwin Carter moved into a tiny cabin in Breckenridge, Colorado, to pursue his passion, the scientific study of the birds and mammals of the Rocky Mountains. Almost single handedly, Carter assembled one of the most complete collections of Colorado fauna then in existence.

Word of Carter's collection spread and, in 1892, a group of prominent Denver citizens declared their interest in moving his collection to the capital city for all to see. Carter offered to sell the entire collection for $10,000. The founders also secured a collection of butterflies and moths, and a collection of crystallized gold.

Together, these three collections formed the nucleus of what would become the Colorado Museum of Natural History, officially incorporated on December 6, 1900. After years of preparation and construction, the Colorado Museum of Natural History finally opened to the public on July 1, 1908. John Campion, the first president of the board, said in his dedication address, “A museum of natural history is never finished". The first director was hired and quickly recruited staff to build more exhibits and create public programs. By 1918, another wing had opened and research efforts were well underway.

In 1927, a team led by the Denver Museum discovered two stone projectile points embedded in an extinct species of bison, in Folsom, New Mexico. These Folsom points demonstrated that humans had lived in North America more than 10,000 years ago, hundreds of years earlier than previously believed.

The museum is partially funded by the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD), which was created by area voters in 1988. It has also attracted large donations from benefactors, such as Morgridge Family Foundation led by philanthropist Carrie Morgridge, which gave $8 million to the museum in 2010, described as being the largest single gift since its founding.

Permanent exhibits

Discovery Zone is a hands-on educational center geared toward children, allowing them to dig up dinosaurs, make craft, and inspect insects.

Egyptian Mummies uses two mummies and their tomb artifacts to teach how the ancient civilization of Egypt preserved its dead. In 2016, the mummies were subjected to CT scan at multiple wavelengths at the Children’s Hospital in Aurora, Colorado, to determine what is wrapped with the mummies

Expedition Health teaches visitors about the human body, including the science of taste.

Gems & Minerals is a re-created mine where visitors can examine many colorful crystals and minerals found both locally and globally.

North American Indian Cultures explores the diversity among Native American groups and the practicality and artistry of their everyday objects.

Prehistoric Journey traces the evolution of life on Earth. Displays include skeletons of diplodocus, allosaurus, and stegosaurus, a sea lilie reef diorama from 435 million years ago, a cast/replica skull of the ancient placoderm fish, dunkleosteus, and a collection of trilobites.

Space Odyssey is about the Universe and our place in it.

Wildlife Exhibits are animal dioramas showing scenes of daily life of many different animals.

Research and collections

Temporary exhibits

Gates Planetarium

Gates Planetarium is a 125-seat planetarium that features unidirectional, semi-reclining stadium seating, 16.4 surround-sound system featuring Ambisonic, a 3-D spatial sound system, and a perforated metal dome, 56 ft (17 m) in diameter and tilted 25 degrees. The current planetarium replaces an older, dome-style planetarium.

Phipps IMAX Theater

The Phipps IMAX Theater on the second floor of the museum was built as the Phipps Auditorium in 1940, and was used for lectures, concerts, and films until 1980. Renovated and reopened in 1983 as the Phipps IMAX Theater, it seats 440 people and now shows large-format IMAX films daily.

Morgridge Family Exploration Center and Avenir Collections Facility

In 2014, a $70 million addition was added to the museum containing the Morgridge Family Exploration Center and the Avenir Collections Center.

The Morgridge Family Exploration Center constitutes three above-ground levels that encourage visitors to learn about science and the natural world. The center includes Exploration Studios, a new temporary exhibition gallery, an atrium space, a completely-redeveloped Discovery Zone for early learners, and the outdoor, Boettcher Plaza with unique public art.

The Avenir Collections Center, part of a $70 million expansion in 2007, is a climate-controlled facility devoted to housing for nearly 1.5 million artifacts and specimens. The facility includes 63,000 square feet in two underground levels, and holds specimens such as bison form the 1870s, passenger pigeons, the last grizzly bear to be killed in Colorado in 1979, and roadkill brought in by the public. The data from these specimens is placed in online databases, and linked to public databases, like BioPortal.

Museum secrets

The museum contains a number of hidden secrets that visitors may search for. Kent Pendleton, one of the museum's diorama painters, painted eight elves in his work, hidden throughout the museum. Guests are encouraged to search for the elves with a printable scavenger hunt In the IMAX lobby entrance there are several painted pictures hidden on the walls relating to Star Wars.