http://www.geologymuseum.org/, https://news.wisc.edu/visiting-journalist-gets-close-up-look-at-geology-museums-treasures

UW Geology Museum, 1215 W Dayton Street, Madison, WI (2025)

04/04/2025

Add us to your weekend plans! Tomorrow (Saturday) from 9-2 at our annual Open House we'll have special hands-on stations where you can meet our notable fossil finds, including North America's oldest dinosaur, Ahvaytum bahndooiveche! You can also explore more curiosity-filled venues on campus taking part in Science Expeditions. See the full event schedule at the link in our comments!

03/21/2025

Happy Spring Break Badgers! We are open next week during our regular hours Monday-Friday 8:30am-4:30pm and Saturday 9:00am-1:00pm. Admission is always free. If you're around, take some time to learn about Earth's fascinating history!

03/20/2025

Join us at the Geology Museum Open House this year🌍! On Saturday, April 5th between 9am-2pm learn about the northern hemisphere's oldest dinosaur🦖, Earth's oldest rocks, deep time, and more. We hope to see you there!

Photo 1📷:Student worker Liam teaching about the museums Mastodon
Photo 2📷:Museum worker Dave teaching about fossils
Photo 3📷:Visitors enjoying one of our rocks and minerals cases

03/14/2025

On Sunday April 6th, 5:45pm at the Chazen Musuem of Art, join Director Ethan Parrish and our own Museum Scientist Dave Lovelace for the Wisconsin Film Festival showing of "What's in a Name?" Link to purchase tickets in the comments!
The process of naming newly discovered dinosaur species is explored as Dr. David Lovelace from the UW Geology Museum collaborates with Shoshone and Ojibwe tribespeople in Wyoming on coming up with appropriate names for these ancient but new-to-us creatures.
Director: Ethan C. Parrish • Cast: Reba Teran, Dr. Dave Lovelace, Mark Roy, Crystal Reynolds

02/21/2025

Museum undergraduate Owen made a splash last week when he won the UW Madison Darwin Day Art Contest! This year's theme was "Adaptation" which inspired Owen to think about whale evolution. He created this piece which captures the "first whale" Pakicetus paddling alongside a modern whale. Join us in congratulating Owen on his success!

02/21/2025

Museum undergraduate Owen made a splash last week when he won the UW Madison Darwin Day Art Contest! This year's theme was "Adaptation" which inspired Owen to think about whale evolution. He created this piece which captures the "first whale" Pakicetus paddling alongside a modern whale. Join us in congratulating Owen on his success!

02/14/2025

This Valentines Day, we’re sharing the love for geology!♥️

Check out these heartwarming thank you notes from students who visited the museum. Their appreciation and curiosity for geology means the world to us! 🌎 We also can’t take for granite our dino-mite tour guides who create such gneiss experiences. To the museum supporters and visitors, you guys rock! We hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day!

Photo 1📷: Collection of heart shaped thank you notes from our student visitors.
Photo 2📷: Close up of on of the students heart shaped thank you notes.

02/07/2025

Our is the Notogeneous osculus, a type of early ray finned sand fish🐟 from the Eocene epoch (around 43 million years ago). They were some of the largest fishes found in the string of lakes and rivers that made up the modern green river formation, before Wyoming dried out. It is theorized they were river dwelling bottom feeders that could only enter the lake beds when they got to a suitable size, or for seasonal turn over to warm up the usually cold and anoxic water. Wyoming wasn’t the only water these fish could roam, and members of the genus Notogeneous have been found across the globe, with modern relatives found in Indo-pacific shorelines. Not a bad distance to travel for a 19cm lake fish.

Picture1📷:Notogeneous osculus, Wyoming, donated by: Stephen Seyer 1991

01/27/2025

This week's might sound like it comes out of a fairytale, but we promise it’s real. 📖 Wulfenite is commonly found in the oxidation zones of lead and molybdenum ores, producing flaky blocks of crystals that can have startling colors. Wulfenite was first described by the math teacher, priest, and naturalist with the most comic book friendly name, Franz Xaver von Wulfen. To honor his work describing the conditions of the eastern alps, this mineral was later named after him. In Europe it is most commonly found in Bleiberg Austria, the site of its identification. In our neck of the woods most wulfenite comes out of Arizona and Mexico, producing dazzling reds and yellows that you can see on display in the museum.

Photo 1 📷- Wulfenite, Mexico. Donor: R Jenkins 1975.
Photo 2 📷- Wulfenite, Los Lamentos Chihuahua Mexico. Donor: Helen M. Snyder.

01/17/2025

We will be closed Monday, January 20th in observance of MLK Jr Day. Normal hours will resume for the rest of the week from 8:30am-4:30pm and Saturday from 9:00am-1:00pm.

01/15/2025

Ever wondered what the Earth’s secrets look like up close 🌍🌋? Are you a teacher, scout leader, or part of a civic group that might like to visit together? Book a time to visit the Geology Museum and discover the fascinating stories behind our Earth’s past and present!

Here at the museum we offer both guided tours and self-guided tours. Our guided tours are typically an hour long and taught by one of our knowledgeable guides. On the tour, you will see hundreds of rock and mineral specimens, a black light mineral display, many Wisconsin fossils, and dinosaur bones! For self-guided tours, if you are coming in a group of 10 or more we ask that you contact us in advance to schedule time to come explore the exhibits. For these tours, we offer scavenger hunt sheets and a tour booklet to enhance your experience. Both of these tours are open to all ages and groups, so book a tour with your family, friends, work, school, etc. to go on an education adventure! Contact us at our email [email protected] or our phone number (608)-262-1412. We hope to see you soon!

📷:
1) Teachers and students learning in the rocks and mineral room
2) Students on a self-guided tour learning about fluorescence in our black light display
3) Fascinated students in our replica cave

01/13/2025

Our superstar this week is Pyromorphite, and with a name meaning “form of fire” it's interesting shape makes it easy to see how it caught our attention. 👀Pyromorphite was originally identified in the 18th century and known by the evocative names "Grön Blyspat" and "Minera plumbi viridis". Often found as bright green and yellow crystals that are barrel-shaped, fan-like, or grape-like bunches, they have a distinct Jolly Rancher feel!

Photo📷-Pyromorphite, Saxony Germany. Anonymous donor.

UW Geology Museum

04/04/2025

03/21/2025

03/20/2025

03/14/2025

02/21/2025

02/21/2025

02/14/2025

02/07/2025

01/27/2025

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01/15/2025

01/13/2025

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