Dinosaurs

This new 650 square metre exhibition explores how dinosaurs lived and died and how we know - using modern science and cutting-edge technology to tell a 230 million year old story for new generations of dinosaur enthusiasts.

With four main thematic areas - Dinosaur World; Dinosaur Life; Discovering Dinosaurs; and Surviving Dinosaurs - visitors will travel through time to a spellbinding land of awe-inspiring giants of the past.

Marvel at newly discovered dinosaurs never before displayed in Australia including the 228 million year old Eoraptor; the bird-like Bambiraptor; and the amazing Jobaria - a 22m long sauropod (long-necked plant eater) rearing up on its tree-trunk like hind legs and reaching a whopping 10m tall!

See impressive life-size models including feathered dinosaurs from China, as well as a diverse range of carnivore and herbivore dinosaur skulls and skeletons - from the well-known T. rex to the bizarre Cryolophosaurus discovered in Antarctica and the intimidating Chasmosaurus with massive frills and horns.

Discover the latest answers to age-old questions - How did dinosaurs breed and grow? How did they hunt and capture prey? Were they social creatures? And what really happened during the mass extinction 65 million years ago?

This captivating dinosaur world is brought to life through a range of imaginative techniques including dramatic lighting effects, hands-on fossil specimens, touch screen computers, interactives and huge projected scenes.

Highlights for visitors of all ages include:
Make a sound like a crested dinosaur;
Spin the 'wheel of misfortune' and discover what animals survived the mass extinction;
Watch the life-sized, CGI-animated projection that recreates a real Australian dinosaur stampede;
Breathe in smells of the dinosaur world;
Compare your height to dinosaurs of different ages;
Dig up and identify dinosaur bones in the hands-on laboratory; and,
Get creative with 'Design-a-saurus' - answer some simple questions to design a dinosaur that best matches your personality.

The exhibition also takes a uniquely Australian approach offering a fascinating insight into the type of dinosaurs found in our own backyards and recreating the Australia of pre-historic times.

The Australian highlights include a skeleton of the 9m long plant-eating Muttaburrasaurus; a life-size model of Minmi -- an armoured dinosaur found in Queensland; and a complete Australian scene from some 110 million years ago featuring a deadly encounter for the herbivorous dinosaur Fulgurotherium.

Dinosaurs forms part of Stage 1 of the NSW Government's $41 million Australian Museum Revitalisation Project.

Dinosaurs are coming alive at the Australian Museum on - make a date to visit a world larger than life as we know it!