NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) – The Virginia Living Museum has been the dinosaur destination for dinosaur lovers locally for nearly 30 years and, according to the museum, 2020 promises to be the biggest year yet.

The museum will begin its dinosaur year with a new traveling exhibit, “Tiny Titans: Dinosaur Eggs and Babies” which begins Jan. 18 and ending May 3.

From May 23 through Sept. 7, the museum will debut the largest dinosaur to ever be displayed at the museum, in the “Jurassic Giants” exhibit. This exhibit will feature the Giganotosaurus and will bring animatronic creatures of the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods for summer 2020.

On display in the museum’s Changing Exhibits Gallery, Tiny Titans will captivate visitors of all ages, according to the museum.

Developed by Charlie and Florence Magovern of The Stone Company in Boulder, Colorado, in association with the Harvard Museum of Natural History, the hands-on exhibit offers an astounding array of authentic dinosaur eggs and nests collected from all over the globe – including those of each of the major plant and meat-eating dinosaur groups.

A central feature of the exhibit is a presentation about the discovery of “Baby Louie,” the nearly complete skeleton of a dinosaur embryo.

Each section in the exhibit is enhanced with lifelike models of embryos and hatchlings, colorful illustrations of dinosaur family life and photographs of some of the world’s most renowned dinosaur hunters and their discoveries.

Photo courtesy of the Virginia Living Museum.

The live animal program “A Family of Titans” will be open every Saturday (Jan. 18 to May 2) at noon, 1 p.m. and 2 p.m.

The price is included in museum admission.

The “Zula Patrol: Down to Earth” planetarium turns up evidence that the villainous Deliria Delight has been travelling back in time to Earth’s prehistoric past to illegally dump her company’s toxic trash.

In this adventure, the Zula patrollers learn about the formation and development of the Earth. The program runs from Jan. 18 to May 3 at 12:30 p.m. daily. 

The planetarium showings are free for VLM members and $4 plus museum admission for non-members.