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Science / Dinosaurs

A Tyrannosaurus Rex head on display in Beijing. The country's fossil boom has resulted in a bevy of options for tourists seeking pterosaurs, feathered dinosaurs and early bird specimens.

Ten Chinese Museums Where You Can See a Dinosaur Fossil Up Close

The country’s dino explosion has created a mecca for tourists intent on catching a glimpse of feathered dinos and other prehistoric wonders

Liu Cun Yu, the director of the Beipiao Pterosaur Museum, poses in front of a full-scale model of a Moganopterus zhuiana, a species named after his wife.

The Great Chinese Dinosaur Boom

A gold rush of fossil-finding is turning China into the new epicenter of paleontology

An artist's interpretation of two giant pterosaurs in the Late Cretaceous.

New Research

What Doomed the Pterosaurs?

Killed off in their prime, the leathery fliers may have been living too large for their own good

This dinosaur footprint was found in sandstone at Dinosaur Track at Hackberry Canyon in Grand Staircase-Escalante National. A proclamation recently signed by President Trump would reduce the protected area by half.

What Shrinking Fossil-Rich National Monuments Means for Science

Smithsonian.com asks paleontologists how their work will change after the decision to slash Bears Ears and Grand Staircase

An illustration of the raccoon-like Sinosauropteryx, which lived 130 million years ago in the Early Cretaceous.

New Research

This Adorable Bandit-Faced Dinosaur Will Steal Your Heart

Some dinos were small, fluffy and frankly adorable, a new analysis shows

Tyler Lyson at the site for the Hadrosaur femur

The Ultimate Summer Camp Activity: Digging for Dinosaurs

Meet the intrepid teenagers and teenagers-at-heart who swelter in the heat hunting for fossils

An artist's illustration of Patagotitan mayorum, the latest and possibly most gargantuan in a series of recent giant dino finds.

New Research

Did Scientists Just Unveil the Biggest Dinosaur of All Time?

The jury’s still out—but if you can get over the size contest, far more fascinating patterns about these giants emerge

Clayton Phipps looks over the massive ceratopsian fossil. The ancient creature’s rib cage is on the left and the pelvis on the right.

Will the Public Ever Get to See the “Dueling Dinosaurs”?

America’s most spectacular fossil, found by a plucky Montana rancher, is locked up in a secret storage room. Why?

An artist's rendering of the new species Teleocrater rhadinus hunting a cynodont, a close relative of mammals.

New Research

Before There Were Dinosaurs, There Was This Weird Crocodile-Looking Thing

A new analysis of an ancient enigma offers clues as to how dino evolution unfolded

The Field Museum's famed T-Rex Sue may be long dead, but she still requires a lot of TLC.

Preserve and Protect: How Paleontologists Care for Their Long-Dead, High-Maintenance Stars

Fossil collections are where the science of paleontology truly lives. Valuable dino bones must be treated accordingly

The well-known dinosaur skeleton known as "Big Mama" has been hiding a secret.

New Research

Fossilized Dinos Are Bones Turned to Stone—But Sometimes, Part of the Original Dino Survives

Every fossilized skeleton is a unique snowflake. We now know that some contain biological bits of tooth and claw

Stegosaurus and Ceratosaurus are among one of the most successful groups ever to have evolved.

Celebrate Dino Month With Three New Dinosaur Books

From PhDs to 4th graders, something for everyone

Computer image of Triopticus skull overlaid on the field site where it was found.

Paleontologists Probe the Bonehead that Foreshadowed Domed Dinos

This striking skull shape evolved at least twice. But what was its purpose?

In an artist's interpretation, the forested and warm Late Cretaceous is abruptly destroyed by a six-mile wide asteroid.

Life Bounced Back After the Dinosaurs Perished

The devastation was immediate, catastrophic and widespread, but plants and mammals were quick to take over

This toy diplodocus fetches up to $600 on eBay.

This Man Claims He Has the World’s Largest Collection of Toy Dinosaurs, and He Loves Them All

Randy Knol’s stunning array chronicles our evolving knowledge about the prehistoric beasts

An artist's rendering of Chicxulub, the asteroid believed to have wiped out large dinosaurs and reshaped parts of the world.

Journey to the Center of Earth

What Happened in the Seconds, Hours, Weeks After the Dino-Killing Asteroid Hit Earth?

The Cretaceous forecast: Tsunamis, a deadly heat pulse, and massive cooling.

Paleontologist Paul Olsen of Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory is co-leading a project in Arizona's Petrified Forest National Park to drill deep into rocks dating back more than 200 million years.

Journey to the Center of Earth

Defying Critics, Paleontologist Paul Olsen Looks for Hidden Answers Behind Mass Extinctions

From a childhood spent discovering fossils to tangling over questions of ancient life and death, this scientist constantly pushes the boundaries.

Illustration of Gualicho shinyae hunting with its jaws, not arms.

Arm Day at the Gym Apparently Not a Thing for Newly Found, Tiny-Armed Dino

Turns out T. rex doesn’t have a copyright on those adorably awkward, itty-bitty arms

Portrait of paleontologist Mary Anning and her trusty assistant, Tray.

These Paleo Pets Made Fossil Hunting Less Lonely

In the solitary hunt for bones, furry companions provide company, act as field assistants and sometimes even make the ultimate sacrifice

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