CATALYST

This month, we have exciting programs and events at the Museum!  Whether you're trying to dig for dinosaurs in the Discovery Zone, take relaxing walk through the Wildlife Halls or move your body to a Bad Bunny Laser Show in the planetarium  — we have something for everyone!

Here are just a few of things you could do to fill your day the Museum this month: 

The Secret World of Elephants

Last month at the Museum!

Enter “The Secret World of Elephants” to discover the remarkable science behind nature’s most lovable giants. How do elephants “hear” with their feet? What animals are their closest-living relatives? How have elephants and humans coexisted for thousands of years? Through hands-on interactions, you will feel the low-frequency rumbles elephants use to communicate, explore how they reshape their environments and come face-to-face with some of their ancestors, including dwarf elephants. From the ancient Ice Age to today’s African savanna, get ready to be amazed by elephants’ fascinating history and incredible intelligence — and inspired to help protect their future. All exhibition content is bilingual in English and Spanish. Learn more here!

Read more: Understanding Nature’s Most Loveable Giants

Brick Planet: A magical journey made with LEGO® bricks

“Brick Planet: A magical journey made with LEGO® bricks” takes you on an imaginative journey around the world through the lens of artist Sean Kenney’s sculptures built with LEGO® bricks. Explore our planet’s unique ecosystems, brought to life through colorful, playful environments where nature provides the building blocks for creative inspiration and scientific discovery. From towering polar bears and coral reefs to bustling cities and African savannas, you will feel a renewed sense of wonder for the rich balance of life that binds ecosystems and their inhabitants. Enjoy plenty of hands-on opportunities, from building LEGO® brick creations to sketching journals and playing a magnetized game. Free with Museum admission, the exhibition’s content is bilingual in English and Spanish. Learn more, here!

Discovering Teen Rex

Get up close with history in the making! Come see an extremely rare, totally complete triceratops fossil get uncovered in real-time. Also, get you can catch a glimpse of an incredible dinosaur bone that we found in the Museum parking lot and the famous Teen Rex fossil!

This exhibition, free with general admission, is best when paired with the documentary "T. Rex 3D," which is now showing on our giant screen Infinity Theater.

Read more: Museum Scientists Discover a Complete Triceratops Skull

Upcoming In-Person Events

Curious Kids: Ready, Set, Rockets! (Ages 2-5)

Jan. 28 | 8:45 a.m.

Curious Kids is a hands-on early childhood program designed for children their grown-ups. Each session dives into themed science adventures filled with stories, live demonstrations and experiments, or activities you’ll explore together. Curious Kids is the perfect way to nurture your little scientist's wonder of the world. Get your little astronaut and join us for Star Explorers! This 45-minute session is designed for kids between two and five years-old to explore the power of the sun and create solar art to discover how sunlight affects our world. Capacity is limited. Caregivers are required to stay and engage alongside their little learners. Get tickets!

60 Minutes in Space

Jan. 28 | 7 p.m.

 Explore breaking space news with space scientists and hear the latest updates on missions exploring the solar system, rocket launches, cutting-edge astronomy and more.  This evening's presentation is by Dr. KaChun Yu, curator of Space Sciences at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. No reservations required. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Please use the Main Museum Entrance.

Southern Plains Beadwork Project: Passing through Walls - Casey Mallinckrodt

Feb. 11 | 7 p.m.

Join us for an inside look at the Avenir Conservation Center’s Southern Plains Beadwork Project as it concludes its first two‑year phase. This collaborative effort brought together DMNS conservators and curators, partner scholars, and Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Kiowa Tribal communities in Oklahoma. Together, the team transported multiple beaded hide belongings from the DMNS collections to Oklahoma, creating rare opportunities for shared learning across generations and disciplines. The result: a deeper, community‑driven understanding of the artistry, skill, and profound cultural meaning embedded in Southern Plains beadwork.. Get tickets!

Curious Kids: Look and Learn Lab (Ages 2-5) 

Feb. 12 & 14 | 8:45 a.m.

Explore the science of senses! Curious Kids is a hands-on early childhood program designed for children and their grown-ups. Each session dives into themed science adventures filled with stories, live demonstrations and experiments, or activities you’ll explore together. Curious Kids is the perfect way to nurture your little scientist's wonder of the world. Science starts with curious senses that investigate by seeing, hearing, touching, smelling and even tasting! Look, learn and discover as young scientists explore colors, shapes, sizes and fine details through sight. Get tickets!

Science Lounge – Darwin Day Valentine’s Soirée

Feb. 12 | 7 p.m.

Join us as we honor Charles Darwin, the father of evolutionary theory, with a night of romance and discovery. Dive into a lively mini-lecture with Dr. Paula Cushing, senior curator of invertebrate zoology, and Andrew Doll, zoology collections manager, as they reveal the wild world of animal mating rituals — a playful, steamy look at love in nature. Craft clever, heartfelt Valentine’s gifts in our arts and crafts studio inspired by Darwin’s famous “pros and cons” list before his proposal. Sip themed cocktails and mocktails, explore science activations, stargaze (weather permitting) and enjoy a night full of fun, fascination and Valentine’s vibes. Get tickets!

Giant Screen Infinity Theater Movies

The giant screen Infinity Theater has reopened! Don't go home from the Museum without catching a captivating nature and science documentary on the giant screen.

Check here for showtimes and schedule updates

Planetarium Space and Laser Shows

They’re back and more dazzling than ever! Laser shows, presented by Laser Fantasy, have returned to the Denver Museum of Nature & Science and are a perfect match for your summer vibe! Catch your favorite artists in an immersive, mind-blowing light show combined into a full cosmic concert for all your senses.

Check here for showtimes and schedule updates. 

Other planetarium shows now available:

• Encounters in the Milky Way w/ narration by Pedro Pascal
• Great Solar System Adventure
• Black Holes: The Other Side of Infinity
• Black Holes (En Español)
• One World One Sky: Big Bird's Adventure 
• Destination Solar System 

Satisfy your science curiosity during our SCFD Free Days and Free Nights. See enormous fossils of dinosaurs that roamed the Earth millions of years ago or learn about the human body’s capabilities in “Expedition Health.” The entire Museum is open for free, except for the temporary exhibitions, planetarium and Infinity Theater which require an additional charge. Learn more about our free days, here.

• Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026 at 9 a.m.