‘Expedition – Dinosaur’ at Science Museum digs up fun of discovery

OKLAHOMA CITY — No matter what age, it seems that practically everyone will always be fascinated by dinosaurs.

There’s just something about the giant prehistoric monsters and the primordial, blossoming world that they inhabited that continues to spark any curious mind – young, old, or anywhere in between – and to activate anyone’s inner explorer.

Well if that sounds like you, Science Museum Oklahoma is letting you put those exploratory instincts into action in “Expedition: Dinosaur,” a high-tech, multi-sensory new temporary exhibit that invites guests not only to learn all about dinos, but to dig into the histories and methods of their discovery as well.

Depiction of two Sphaerotholus about to but heads. Oklahoma Science Museum, Nov., 2024 (B.DICKERSON/Okla City Free Press)

Running from now until January, “Expedition: Dinosaur” came to SMO at just the right time, as they were looking to fill the huge, temporarily empty floor space left from the removal of the old planetarium ahead of the launch of the new state-of-the-art Love’s Planetarium.

“We feel blessed to have so much space right now,” said SMO’s Director of Communications, Abby Wolfe. “We really wanted to fill it with something that people of all ages could enjoy, even if it’s just temporary.”

The past alive

Developed by California-based exhibit creators Stage 9, “Expedition: Dinosaur” features moving, teeth-gnashing animatronic dinosaurs and loads of futuristically designed, hands-on interfaces and buttons to press.

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Depiction of an Albertosaurus at the Oklahoma Science Museum in OKC, Nov., 2024 (B.DICKERSON/Okla City Free Press)

But it’s not just all about the wow factor. 

Appropriately for SMO, the exhibit focuses less on the simple spectacle of roaring dinosaurs and more on the science and unique biology of the still-mysterious creatures.

That means informational inclusions alongside the animatronics examining things like bone and skull formations, dinosaur diets, and even the (for some) unexpected presence of feathers atop their scales.

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Depiction of velociraptors with feathers at the Oklahoma Science Museum in OKC Nov. 2024. (B.DICKERSON/Okla City Free Press)

“It really helps to have these interactive elements,” Wolfe said. “Especially the creative aspects of this exhibit are critical.”

In addition to the interactive push-button dinosaurs and video installations, there are a number of open-ended creative elements scattered throughout, such as a real-time projection-mapped sandbox that invites visitors to dig in and alter the prehistoric topography with their own hands.

There’s even a video terminal that lets guests hand-color a dinosaur of their choosing and then scan it into the computer-generated world populated by packs of wildly colorful creatures.

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The video terminal scans coloring projects from a table provided nearby that allows kids and adults to see the scan of their dinosaur in an imagined context. (B.DICKERSON/Okla City Free Press)

“If you’re just walking through and the dinosaurs are moving and all, that’s great, but what’s better is having an opportunity for people to stop and engage and slow down,” said Wolfe. “That’s what get’s people get involved and feel comfortable in the space.”

Digging through history

But “Expedition: Dinosaur” isn’t just about the dinosaurs themselves, it also delves into the tools, techniques, and figures that led the way for the discovery and understanding of prehistoric animals.

“Something we really like about this is that it lends a little bit to the history of exploration and excavation, and it kind of talks about the decades in which folks were really after dinosaur fossils,” Wolfe explained. “It’s really a treat for people to see and learn about how they worked through things.”

There’s a full-sized recreation of the kind of field tent in which paleontologists would have lived and worked at dig sites through the 19th and 20th centuries, complete with leather-bound journals, oil lamps, stocked provisions, and even a remarkably “Indiana Jones”-style hat.

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A diorama showing what the inside of an archaeologist’s tent would have looked like in the early days of discovering fossils. On display at the Oklahoma Science Museum in OKC. (B.DICKERSON/Okla City Free Press)

There’s even a display of the tools used for excavation at the time, including dynamite (but don’t worry, it’s not real.)

It all lends an air of adventure and intrigue to the very real stories from the “Great Dinosaur Rush” and beyond, that period that saw the greatest figures in discovery and excavation racing to uncover more and more about the mysteries of dinosaurs and the prehistoric Earth.

There are even hidden elements to get guests in on that same spirit of discovery.

“Every day, we hide a number of these little fake fossils all over the exhibit,” Wolfe said. “And whoever finds them gets to keep them and take them home.”

Space exploration

As “Expedition: Dinosaur” is a traveling exhibit only temporarily on loan, SMO was lucky to find themselves with the perfect empty space to house the installation at just the right time, thanks to the area opened up on the Science Floor by removing the old planetarium.

It even fortuitously worked out that “Expedition: Dinosaur” could go in right next to the museum’s own massive two-story dinosaur skeleton replica, making it feel like a natural part of the exhibit itself.

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The space left from removing the old planetarium now affords the Oklahoma Science Museum much more flexible space for large exhibits. (B.DICKERSON/Okla City Free Press)

But the experience of hosting “Expedition: Dinosaur” – and the marked success that the exhibit has seen since it opened in October – already has the SMO staff considering how best to utilize this newly freed, multi-thousand square-foot space previously occupied by the planetarium.

“There are a couple of ideas floating around about this space for permanent use,” Wolfe said. “There are a lot of ideas about how we can bring more of this kind of interactivity to the Science Floor. So they’re exploring some things, but we’re not quite ready to decide just yet. So we may see some more temporary exhibits come into this space in the meantime.”

Wolfe even said that the remarkably positive public response they’ve already seen for “Expedition: Dinosaur” has them thinking about incorporating more dinosaur-themed exhibits and activities into the museum.

“This really has been something for everyone and all ages, not just the older kids, but the really young ones, too,” she said. “I mean, who doesn’t love dinosaurs?”

“Expedition: Dinosaur” runs at Science Museum Oklahoma now through January 5th. For museum admission, hours, and more information, visit sciencemuseumok.org.


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Brett Fieldcamp has been covering arts, entertainment, news, housing, and culture in Oklahoma for nearly 15 years, writing for several local and state publications. He’s also a musician and songwriter and holds a certification as Specialist of Spirits from The Society of Wine Educators.