Latest news with #DenverMuseumofNatureandScience
Indian Express
21-07-2025
- Science
- Indian Express
Dinosaur fossil unearthed beneath Colorado museum's parking lot
In a surprising event, scientists at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, in Colorado, US, have unearthed a rare dinosaur fossil. And not from a faraway dig site, but from right beneath the museum's own parking lot! The discovery, revealed by the museum on July 9, came during a routine drilling operation in January aimed at evaluating the feasibility of switching to geothermal energy. As the team extracted a cylindrical rock core from 760 feet below the surface, they encountered a fossilised vertebra measuring about 2.5 inches in diameter. It turned out to be the oldest and deepest dinosaur fossil ever found within Denver's city limits, according to the museum's release, cited by CNN. The partial vertebra is believed to belong to an herbivorous, bipedal dinosaur from the ornithopod group, a category of plant-eating dinosaurs that includes duck-billed hadrosaurs. Though scientists were unable to identify the exact species, the fossil dates back more than 67 million years, placing it in the Late Cretaceous period. 'We knew those dinosaurs were nearby in other parts of Colorado or Wyoming, but we didn't know that they were in Denver, too,' said Dr James Hagadorn, the museum's curator of geology, as per CNN reports. 'Now, we have another plant eater that's been cruising around Denver munching on, who knows, gingers and palm leaves and other ferns and plants 67 million years ago.' The museum, which houses about 115,000 fossils in its collection, has now placed the ornithopod vertebra on public display. Hagadorn noted that there are only two other known instances worldwide of a dinosaur bone being found through a core sampling project, making this fossil likely the first of its kind ever showcased in a museum. Despite the fossil's importance, the rest of the dinosaur's remains will remain underground. 'Unfortunately, we can't excavate our entire parking lot. Parking is really important at the museum and in all cultural centres,' Hagadorn joked according to CNN. 'But the bonus here is that people can now park right on top of a dinosaur.' The drilling project initially aimed to explore alternative energy sources, not fossils. 'It's like the lucky strike,' Hagadorn told CNN. The museum team has since used satellite and elevation data to date the new fossil and others in the Denver region more precisely. Their findings, published in Rocky Mountain Geology in June, offer a clearer picture of Denver's ancient inhabitants, which include not just ornithopods but also Tyrannosaurus rex, Triceratops, and Torosaurus. 'No one ever dated these things before,' said Hagadorn. 'Today, we were able to use some specialised maps, geologic maps, GIS and really precise elevations that you can now get from satellites to place all these things in space and then in time.' (With inputs from CNN)
Time of India
17-07-2025
- Science
- Time of India
Scientists discover 67.5-million-year-old dinosaur fossil beneath Denver Museum parking lot
The Denver Museum of Nature and Science in Colorado located an approximately 67.5-million-year-old partial dinosaur bone 763 feet below its parking lot. What makes it a special discovery is that it is the oldest and deepest ever found in Denver. The museum, which has been popular and has attracted visitors for decades to see the fossilized bones of prehistoric behemoths, is filled with exhibits of dinosaur skeletons. The fossil was unearthed as part of a drilling project that was undertaken with the purpose of better understanding the geology of the Denver Basin, according to media reports. As a part of the project, the museum wanted to understand the geology to see if it would be possible to replace natural gas with geothermal systems to heat and cool the museum. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Select a Course Category others Leadership Management Healthcare Artificial Intelligence CXO Operations Management Technology Others Public Policy Degree MCA PGDM Project Management Data Science MBA Finance Data Analytics Product Management healthcare Design Thinking Data Science Digital Marketing Cybersecurity Skills you'll gain: Duration: 16 Weeks Indian School of Business CERT - ISB Cybersecurity for Leaders Program India Starts on undefined Get Details 'This partial vertebra from a plant-eating dinosaur offers an extraordinary glimpse into prehistoric Denver and the animals that inhabited this area,' the museum wrote in a statement, as quoted by Popular Mechanics. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 20 Pieces of Clothing Older Women should Avoid Learn More Undo Two drilling rigs drilled test holes beneath a paved parking lot at the museum, going nearly 1,000 feet deep. Earlier in 2025, one of the museum's geologists spotted a dinosaur bone while sorting through the finds, instantly sparking excitement among the staff. "There are never fossil emergencies," Hagadorn said in an interview. "But that was a fossil emergency," James Hagadorn, the museum's curator of geology, said in an interview. Live Events 'It's like winning a lottery': Museum curator on dinosaur bone discovery What are the chances of discovering a dinosaur bone in a core sample that's only 2.5 inches wide? 'It's basically like winning the lottery and getting struck by lightning on the same day,' says James Hagadorn, the museum's curator of geology, in the statement. Bob Raynolds, an Earth scientist who has been associated with the museum for 35 years, described the discovery as 'nothing short of magical.' It is, however, still not clear which species the bone came from, but media reports suggest that experts suspect the creature may have been similar to Thescelosaurus or Edmontosaurus. These two dinosaurs were known to have roamed the region around the same time. How Did Scientists Discover the Age The scientists used the existing map of the horizon and measured the depth of various fossil discoveries in the area and compared them with the one made in January 2025 to find out the estimated age of 70 million years. The fossil is cylindrical and just inches long, and there is a chance that it is a part of a bigger bone. The fossil is too small to be linked to a specific dinosaur. The museum team, though, hypothesizes that it belonged to an ornithopod, a small herbivore. It is also believed that this may be the oldest dinosaur fossil found in the Denver area. Following the latest major discovery, scientists at the museum are confident that there are more fossils buried in the excavated materials from the drilled core and have been combing through them to see if there are others.
Arab Times
12-07-2025
- Science
- Arab Times
A dino museum makes a find deep under its own parking lot
DENVER, July 12, (AP): A Denver museum known for its dinosaur displays has made a fossil bone discovery closer to home than anyone ever expected, under its own parking lot. It came from a hole drilled more than 750 feet (230 meters) deep to study geothermal heating potential for the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. The museum is popular with dinosaur enthusiasts of all ages. Full-size dinosaur skeletons amaze kiddos barely knee-high to a parent, much less to a Tyrannosaurus. This latest find is not so visually impressive. Even so, the odds of finding the hockey-puck-shaped fossil sample were impressively small. With a bore only a couple of inches (5 centimeters) wide, museum officials struggled to describe just how unlikely it was to hit a dinosaur, even in a region with a fair number of such fossils. "Finding a dinosaur bone in a core is like hitting a hole in one from the moon. It's like winning the Willy Wonka factory. It's incredible, it's super rare,' said James Hagadorn, the museum's curator of geology. Only two similar finds have been noted in bore hole samples anywhere in the world, not to mention on the grounds of a dinosaur museum, according to museum officials. A vertebra of a smallish, plant-eating dinosaur is believed to be the source. It lived in the late Cretaceous period around 67.5 million years ago. An asteroid impact brought the long era of dinosaurs to an end around 66 million years ago, according to scientists. Fossilized vegetation also was found in the bore hole near the bone. "This animal was living in what was probably a swampy environment that would have been heavily vegetated at the time,' said Patrick O'Connor, curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Dinosaur discoveries in the area over the years include portions of Tyrannosaurus rex and triceratops-type fossils. This one is Denver's deepest and oldest yet, O'Connor said. Other experts in the field vouched for the find's legitimacy but with mixed reactions. "It's a surprise, I guess. Scientifically it's not that exciting,' said Thomas Williamson, curator of paleontology at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science in Albuquerque. There was no way to tell exactly what species of dinosaur it was, Williamson noted. The find is "absolutely legit and VERY COOL!' Erin LaCount, director of education programs at the Dinosaur Ridge track site just west of Denver, said by email. The fossil's shape suggests it was a duck-billed dinosaur or thescelosaurus, a smaller but somewhat similar species, LaCount noted. The bore-hole fossil is now on display in the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, of course, but there are no plans to look for more under the parking lot. "I would love to dig a 763-foot (233-meter) hole in the parking lot to excavate that dinosaur, the rest of it. But I don't think that's going to fly because we really need parking,' Hagadorn said.
New York Post
11-07-2025
- Science
- New York Post
Denver dino museum makes a find deep under own parking lot, Like ‘a hole in one from the moon.'
DENVER (AP) — A Denver museum known for its dinosaur displays has made a fossil bone discovery closer to home than anyone ever expected, under its own parking lot. It came from a hole drilled more than 750 feet (230 meters) deep to study geothermal heating potential for the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. 5 Ornithopod vertebra fossil in a core sample. AP 5 Boxes of cores from the City Park core drilling in the parking lot at Denver Museum of Nature and Science. AP The museum is popular with dinosaur enthusiasts of all ages. Full-size dinosaur skeletons amaze kiddos barely knee-high to a parent, much less to a Tyrannosaurus. This latest find is not so visually impressive. Even so, the odds of finding the hockey-puck-shaped fossil sample were impressively small. With a bore only a couple of inches (5 centimeters) wide, museum officials struggled to describe just how unlikely it was to hit a dinosaur, even in a region with a fair number of such fossils. 'Finding a dinosaur bone in a core is like hitting a hole in one from the moon. It's like winning the Willy Wonka factory. It's incredible, it's super rare,' said James Hagadorn, the museum's curator of geology. Only two similar finds have been noted in bore hole samples anywhere in the world, not to mention on the grounds of a dinosaur museum, according to museum officials. A vertebra of a smallish, plant-eating dinosaur is believed to be the source. It lived in the late Cretaceous period around 67.5 million years ago. An asteroid impact brought the long era of dinosaurs to an end around 66 million years ago, according to scientists. 5 Only two similar finds have been noted in bore hole samples anywhere in the world, not to mention on the grounds of a dinosaur museum, according to museum officials. AP 5 A vertebra of a smallish, plant-eating dinosaur is believed to be the source. AP Fossilized vegetation also was found in the bore hole near the bone. 'This animal was living in what was probably a swampy environment that would have been heavily vegetated at the time,' said Patrick O'Connor, curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Dinosaur discoveries in the area over the years include portions of Tyrannosaurus rex and triceratops-type fossils. This one is Denver's deepest and oldest yet, O'Connor said. Other experts in the field vouched for the find's legitimacy but with mixed reactions. 'It's a surprise, I guess. Scientifically it's not that exciting,' said Thomas Williamson, curator of paleontology at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science in Albuquerque. There was no way to tell exactly what species of dinosaur it was, Williamson noted. 5 Geologist James Hagadorn closes boxes of core rock samples. AP The find is 'absolutely legit and VERY COOL!' Erin LaCount, director of education programs at the Dinosaur Ridge track site just west of Denver, said by email. The fossil's shape suggests it was a duck-billed dinosaur or thescelosaurus, a smaller but somewhat similar species, LaCount noted. The bore-hole fossil is now on display in the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, of course, but there are no plans to look for more under the parking lot. 'I would love to dig a 763-foot (233-meter) hole in the parking lot to excavate that dinosaur, the rest of it. But I don't think that's going to fly because we really need parking,' Hagadorn said.
NBC News
11-07-2025
- Science
- NBC News
A Denver dino museum makes a find deep under own parking lot
DENVER — A Denver museum known for its dinosaur displays has made a fossil bone discovery closer to home than anyone ever expected, under its own parking lot. It came from a hole drilled more than 750 feet (230 meters) deep to study geothermal heating potential for the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. The museum is popular with dinosaur enthusiasts of all ages. Full-size dinosaur skeletons amaze kiddos barely knee-high to a parent, much less to a Tyrannosaurus. This latest find is not so visually impressive. Even so, the odds of finding the hockey-puck-shaped fossil sample were impressively small. With a bore only a couple of inches (5 centimeters) wide, museum officials struggled to describe just how unlikely it was to hit a dinosaur, even in a region with a fair number of such fossils. 'Finding a dinosaur bone in a core is like hitting a hole in one from the moon. It's like winning the Willy Wonka factory. It's incredible, it's super rare,' said James Hagadorn, the museum's curator of geology. Only two similar finds have been noted in bore hole samples anywhere in the world, not to mention on the grounds of a dinosaur museum, according to museum officials. A vertebra of a smallish, plant-eating dinosaur is believed to be the source. It lived in the late Cretaceous period around 67.5 million years ago. An asteroid impact brought the long era of dinosaurs to an end around 66 million years ago, according to scientists. Fossilized vegetation also was found in the bore hole near the bone. 'This animal was living in what was probably a swampy environment that would have been heavily vegetated at the time,' said Patrick O'Connor, curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Dinosaur discoveries in the area over the years include portions of Tyrannosaurus rex and triceratops-type fossils. This one is Denver's deepest and oldest yet, O'Connor said. Other experts in the field vouched for the find's legitimacy but with mixed reactions. 'It's a surprise, I guess. Scientifically it's not that exciting,' said Thomas Williamson, curator of paleontology at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science in Albuquerque. There was no way to tell exactly what species of dinosaur it was, Williamson noted. The find is 'absolutely legit and VERY COOL!' Erin LaCount, director of education programs at the Dinosaur Ridge track site just west of Denver, said by email. The fossil's shape suggests it was a duck-billed dinosaur or thescelosaurus, a smaller but somewhat similar species, LaCount noted. The bore-hole fossil is now on display in the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, of course, but there are no plans to look for more under the parking lot. 'I would love to dig a 763-foot (233-meter) hole in the parking lot to excavate that dinosaur, the rest of it. But I don't think that's going to fly because we really need parking,' Hagadorn said.
