Dinosaurs Return to Smithsonian Fossil Room After Five Years of Work

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Washington (CNN) – After five years without fossils, T. rex returns to the Smithsonian.

The David H. Koch Fossil Room – Deep Time at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC, will reopen Saturday after being closed for five years.

The exhibition presents more than 700 fossils ranging from giants like Tyrannosaurus rex to fossilized animals, plants and insects. CNN had a glimpse of the 31,000 square foot exhibit on Tuesday.

"The exhibition tells the story of 3.7 billion years of life on Earth, highlighting the links between ecosystems, climate, geological forces and evolution, and encouraging visitors understand that the choices they make today will have an impact on the future, "said the president. Museum.

The room aims to "chronicle the entire history of life" by illustrating the origins, evolution, and changing environment of different species, according to a press release from the museum . The themes of the exhibition include "All Life is Connected", "Evolution", "Changing Ecosystems", "Earth Processes", "Extinction" and "Age of Man and Global Change".

Smithsonian Institution

Visitors can learn "about the myriad of causes by which humans cause rapid and unprecedented change for the planet" in the Warner Age of Humans Gallery, produced in collaboration with the Anthropocene Advisory Committee, a group of specialists and experts in the field. educators specializing in climate change. Visitors to the museum can also watch scientists prepare fossils in the FossiLab, as stated in the release.

Kirk Johnson, director of the National Museum of Natural History of the City of Sant, said that while the interactive exhibition offered an experience rooted in the past, it also addressed issues relating to current and future challenges of the Earth.

"Visitors to the new venue will participate in a one-of-a-kind trip, a journey that begins in the past and ends in the future," Johnson said in a statement. "Along the way, they will discover the story of life on Earth, a story told through extraordinary fossils and engaging interactive displays."

"Visitors will also be invited to consider the very real challenges our planet faces and their role in building a desirable future," he added.

The building cost $ 110 million, including $ 70 million in federal renovations and $ 40 million in private funding, according to the museum press release.

A celebratory ceremony at 10:15 am on the day of the opening of the exhibition is open to the first 300 visitors to the Madison Drive entrance to the museum, with remarks from the Smithsonian secretary, David Skorton and Johnson .

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