Principal Investigators
Jaelyn Eberle and William Taylor
Collaboration + support
3D Printing Colorado; CU Museum of Natural History; Smithsonian Institution
For more than 40 years, visitors have flocked to the CU Museum of NaturalÌýHistory to catch a glimpse of one big dinosaur specimen: the fossil skull of anÌýancient Triceratops that’s nearly the size of a Mini Cooper. Now, in the midst ofÌýa pandemic, dino-lovers can check out that same three-horned skull, which isÌýon loan from the Smithsonian Institution, from the comfort of their own homes—and in 3D.
The 3D scan is part of the museum’s efforts to digitize large portions of itsÌýcollections from the Cretaceous Period to today, allowing researchers to studyÌýthese important specimens without making the trip to Boulder. It also shedsÌýnew light on Triceratops, which munched on vegetation in a much balmierÌýColorado 68 to 66 million years ago.