Get a behind-the-scenes look at the U-M Museum of Paleontology (UMMP), where research, curation, and education work together to uncover the history of life. UMMP is one of four U-M natural science research museums that are not open to the public, but which partner with the U-M Museum of Natural History to publicly display their collections.

Only a small fraction of the vast UMMP collection is on view at the U-M Museum of Natural History. Watch the video to learn more about the UMMP and Research Museum Center that houses these specimens.

Museum@Home is issued twice a month. The Family Edition is issued on the first Wednesday of the month, and the Adult Edition on the third Wednesday.  

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Expert Expo

Meet scientists and learn about their research

The U-M Museum of Paleontology: Uncovering the untold stories of fossils

Audience: Teens and Adults
Grades: 9-12+
Duration: 6 minutes

Researchers from around the world continue to explore the massive collections housed inside the University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology in an effort to uncover Earth's untold stories dating back as far as 2.1 billion years ago. From ancient plant fossils to more recent mammoth and mastodon skeletons found in Michigan, the museum is home to about four million specimens.

Check out Museum@Home for more science fun!

Upcoming Events

Science Café

Wednesday, November 16, 2022
5:30–7:30 p.m.

How does ocean biodiversity change over deep time? Join Matt Friedman, director of the U-M Museum of Paleontology, and Hernán López-Fernández, chair for collections and curator of fishes in the U-M Museum of Zoology.

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Farrand Memorial Lecture

Thursday, December 1, 2022
7:00 p.m. (reception at 6:00 p.m.)

Join Daniel C. Fisher, Claude W. Hibbard Collegiate Professor of Paleontology, for the 22nd annual William R. Farrand Memorial Lecture, On the Trail of an Ice Age Mastodon.
Live streaming available.

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Planetarium & Dome Theater

November 2022
Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays 

11:30 a.m.   Sea Monsters
12:30 p.m.   Sky Tonight
 1:30 p.m.   Mars: One Thousand One
 2:30 p.m.    Sky Tonight

Planetarium & Dome Theater Shows

Tickets: $8 adults, seniors, and children ages 3 & up. Babies without tickets may be required to sit on an adult's lap. Tickets are available the day of the show. Schedule subject to change.

The planetarium is operating at 50% capacity to maximize distance between viewers. Masks are encouraged.