Beyond Bones

Jupiter and Saturn are in the southeast at dusk this month. Look southeast in the early evening for the two planets which will be about 6 degrees apart. Mars is higher and brighter in the morning sky each day this month. Look high in the south at dawn. Mars now outshines all the stars visible at night from Houston […]

The anthropology holdings of the Houston Museum of Natural Science include an extensive collection of ethnographic materials from South America, to be precise, from the Amazon and Orinoco River basins. These basins cover an area of 2.5 million square miles (or roughly twice the size of India). This hot and humid environment is home to […]

If you have visited the Houston Museum of Natural Science extensively over the past decade, you have more than likely found yourself captivated by James E. Washington III, our resident dinosaur and mineral expert. Blessed with a boundless love of learning and science, “Jurassic James” has given tours to dignitaries, kindergartners and curious adults looking […]

The reviews are in, and our virtual summer camp program is a hit for parents and kids alike! This summer we took to cyberspace and gave our beloved camp program a virtual makeover. Now, you don’t have to go farther than your laptop charger to have a summer science adventure. Led by our science experts, […]

Among the Houston Museum of Natural Science’ collections of Plains Indian materials we find a Lakota beaded possible bag. The Lakota people are part of a confederation of seven related Sioux tribes, the Očhéthi Šakówiŋ or “Seven Council Fires.”  They are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains of North America. The Lakota […]

As we prepared to suspend our newest celestial installation Mars by Luke Jerram in the Glassell Hall, summer interns in the museum’s astronomy department set up a Martian Farm. With the farm, interns are conducting experiments to determine how different plants react to Mars soil compared with Earth soil. They planted different types of plants […]

In something of a surprise, we have a naked eye comet this month, comet NEOWISE! Astronomers discovered this comet on March 27, 2020 using the NEOWISE satellite. This satellite is the Wide Field Infrared Survey Explorer, later used to search for Near Earth Objects. After its discovery, Comet NEOWISE continued to approach the Sun. It […]

One of the most common questions I’m asked as Curator of Vertebrate Zoology is “Where and how do you get your specimens?” The standard answer is that they died of natural causes or from medical complications in captivity or at a wildlife rehabilitation facility, which is how we get the bulk of our specimens. However, […]

I love everything ancient! That particularly goes for ancient writing systems. My fascination started with Egyptian hieroglyphics, but soon turned toward cuneiform. Cuneiform is an ancient writing system that developed in Mesopotamia around 3400 B.C., and it is the oldest form of writing in the world. Cuneiform is not an alphabet, but rather a set […]

The invention of printmaking changed the world. Printing was invented in China between the years 618 to 906 A.D.  The earliest prints were made using wooden blocks that were carved with pictures and writings. The process wasn’t complicated, but it took great skill and time to prepare the blocks for printing. First, the text or […]