North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences

The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences is the largest museum of its kind in the Southeast. Through our exhibits, programs and field experiences, we provide visitors with opportunities to get up close and personal with science and nature.

Featuring an array of permanent and special exhibits, living conservatory (open seasonally), live programs and educational films that appeal to audiences of all ages, the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences encourages visitors to explore the natural world and their connections to it.

The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences offers natural history programs, workshops and trips. Use the Museum's learning resources and online adventures to expand your natural science knowledge during a Museum visit, at home, in the field and in the classroom. Read more on the blog and plan your field trip.

Fan Favorite Exhibits:
Dueling Dinosaur at the 1st Floor of the Museum
Dueling Dinosaurs is a major permanent exhibition and laboratory devoted to a truly important paleontological discovery: the most complete fossils of a tyrannosaur and Triceratops ever found, locked together at the time of death. This unique find will advance our understanding of these species and their behavior in ways we now can only begin to guess at. When open, Dueling Dinosaurs will allow the public to unravel the mystery behind their deaths in a state-of-the art interactive exhibit, while witnessing these remarkable fossils up close as they are studied by researchers in a scientific setting.

Living Conservatory at Nature Exploration Center, 4th Floor
Immerse yourself in a Central American tropical dry forest filled with living plants and animals. Encounter butterflies, turtles, tarantulas, snakes and even a two-toed sloth. Discover a vanilla orchid, pineapple plant, cashew tree and more. Explore North Carolina's connection to the tropics through migration, shared species and products.