Permanent Exhibits

Our core exhibits offer a journey through billions of years of New Mexico's natural history, from the formation of the universe to the present day.

Western North America is famous for its dinosaur fossils. Many of these come from the San Juan Basin of northwestern New Mexico. Most of these specimens were collected in the early part of the 20th century and the resulting specimens were shipped to Museums far from New Mexico. However, since the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science opened in 1986, newly discovered specimens have been found and kept within the state.

Winner of the 2014 Gold MUSE Award for Interpretive Interactive Installations

The Hall of the Stars aims to explain how the night sky is organized.  Though the project had some effort from museum employees, it was almost entirely accomplished by museum volunteers and members the professional astronomical community.  This exhibit encourages visitors to explore the sky at their own pace and learn many different astronomical concepts, from the changing of the seasons to types of deep sky objects that they can see from their own backyards.

Visitors to the Museum are welcomed by two life-size New Mexico dinosaurs created by Albuquerque sculptor Dave Thomas.

The Naturalist Center is the hands-on educational room in the museum where visitors of all ages can learn about the natural world of New Mexico. Microscopes, native animals, touch specimens and more wait for your exploration.  

The process of extracting dinosaur fossils from the rock matrix that has encased them for millions of years is featured in the FossilWorks exhibit at the Museum