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Museums I specifically came to this area to go on a sort of a nuclear tour. My itinerary included the Trinity Site, an old Titan missile base, and the National Atomic Museum. Imagine my surprise when I discovered the the national Atomic Museum is housed within a cluster of museums, between downtown, and Old Town. Making an afternoon of it, I toured the whole group. Photos are not allowed in the art museums; but the others encourage the photographer to gather all the images that he likes. Above: The sculptures outside the art museum attempt to show a bit of the history of the area, in this case, the settlers and pioneers. The looming presence of the missile outside of the National Atomic Museum makes a nice contrast. Left: A Spaniard look out across what must have been a blank wilderness when Europeans first set foot here. A view of the museum area. Within sight of each other are the art museum, the National Atomic Museum, and the New Mexico Museum of Natural History. I love museums, and though we have a great natural history museum in Milwaukee, There are always things to see, do, and learn in these places. The solar system, with a bit of the curved surface of the sun to give a sense of scale. Out beyond the Solar System is, who knows what. This darkened room attempts to give a sense of just how far away things really are. A mammoth skeleton, and friends. These reconstruction's give an idea of the scale of these animals; but not of the fear which they must have inspired. More skeletons, this time of hunter/scavengers. Some ancient bones, with the flesh still covering. These displays of extinct animals have varying degree's of accuracy, once they employ varying degrees of speculation (the scientific name for guesswork), in their depiction.. Some more modern denizens of the sea, and their keeper. A look down upon an ancient ocean, from the mezzanine. The primeval forest A mother looks suspiciously, as I approach her eggs. A bee hive sites in forest, with a tube opening to the outside. Most people get the impression that archeologists dig a hole and  find a skeleton just lying there, whole. This is a depiction of what they actually find. A bone here, and a piece there. Follow the footprints to find the big dinosaur skeletons. The venerable tyrannosaurus, and brontosaurus skeletons. These are a staple of natural history museums. Another view of the dinosaur skeletons, and some of the background exhibits. A pterodactyl hovers over the main hall. Rocks, crystals, and geodes are displayed for the geology enthusiast. There are a pair of cases, for various mineral samples. Names, descriptions, composition, and possible ore content are given. A look across the mezzanine of the main hall. this is mostly geology exhibits, and leads back to the dinosaur hall. A triceratops appears to stand guard over the back door. Or perhaps he is just enjoying a little bask in the sun. A look at the back yard of the museum. It is complete with dinosaur statues, and local plantings. Back to Albuquerque Forward to Atomic Museum