THE GOVERNMENT NEWS DESKPERMANENT NPS STORY ARCHIVE
Organized by publication date and destination. Each story retains its permanent State & Nation address and official NPS source.
Musician and composer David Boye will present Music Inspired by Our National Parks at Scotts Bluff and Agate Fossil Beds National Monuments on September 14 and 15.
Official NPS source
Scotts Bluff National Monument and Agate Fossil Beds National Monument are hiring Visitor Services Assistant for the Summer of 2025.
Official NPS source
A new National Park Service report shows that 189,829 visitors to Scotts Bluff and Agate Fossil Beds National Monuments in 2023 spent $12,990,000 in communities near the parks. That spending supported 171 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $15,318,000.
Official NPS source
The National Park Service (NPS) has selected Jay Sturdevant as the superintendent of Scotts Bluff National Monument and Agate Fossil Beds National Monument located in western Nebraska.
Official NPS source
The Black Hills Raptor Center will bring their birds of prey and explain why they need dark skies.
Official NPS source
Agate Fossil Beds National Monument has the Nebraska Panhandle covered for a summer of amazing star gazing! The park will have six times this summer where the park will be open in the evening during night sky events. Each event will consist of a program on a specific topic, then open time to relax under the stars using your own eyes or one of Agate’s telescopes.
Official NPS source
Come celebrate Junior Ranger Careers Day at Scotts Bluff National Monument on Saturday, April 27, 2024! This FREE, family-friendly event will take place at the Scotts Bluff National Monument Visitor Center, located at 190276 Old Oregon Trail in Gering, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Official NPS source
*Update: Due to pending rain/snow storms, Saturday's program will be held as a drop-in program throughout the day from 10-3pm. No telescope viewing will occur at night.* This Saturday, April 6th marks the beginning of night sky programs for the 2024 season at Agate Fossil Beds National Monument. The season begins with a Junior Ranger program focused on the upcoming total solar eclipse. “Eclipse and Eclairs” will start at 7pm just outside the visitor center. Kids can grab a yummy treat while they participate in eclipse activities to earn their Junior Eclipse badge. Telescope viewing will occur from 8-9pm.
Official NPS source
Merle “Misty” Brave and Jesse Pina, professors from Oglala Lakota College on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota taught fun science lessons to local families. They brought their Little Shop of Physics to Agate Fossil Beds National Monument last Saturday March 16th in celebration of Science Education Day.
Official NPS source
The Artist in Residence Program at Agate Fossil Beds National Monument is in full swing! This month, a landscape photographer will make his home in the park for two weeks. He will host a free special event, “Traditional Black & White Landscape Film Photography” on Saturday, March 23rd from 10-12pm.
Official NPS source
Oglala Lakota College is bringing back their Little Shop of Physics program to Agate Fossil Beds National Monument from 12-2pm on Saturday, March 16th. This is in celebration of National Science Education Day, which is the preceding Thursday.
Official NPS source
Art in the park is back! The Artist in Residence Program welcomes artist Magan Ruthke to Agate Fossil Beds National Monument for the last two weeks of February. Ruthke will host a free special event, “Patterns, Place, and the Natural World: Observe and Interact with Agate’s Artist in Residence” on Saturday, February 24th from 10-12pm.
Official NPS source
Over 40 online visitors helped Agate Fossil Beds National Monument celebrate International Women and Girls in Science Day last Sunday, Feb 11. Four paleontologists, Daniella Balassa, Kristin Watmore, Mattison Shreero, and Sunshyne Santos, presented their ongoing research about the animal fossils of Agate and surrounding Sioux County. A live chat on YouTube followed, with the four scientists answering questions and sharing their stories of being female scientists.
Official NPS source
Join four female paleontologists on a live video premiere and online Q&A Sunday, February 11 starting at 10 a.m. MST on YouTube. Each presentation is 20 minutes at the top of each hour. Each scientist will discuss their current research on fossilized mammals found in or near Agate Fossil Beds National Monument and Badlands National Park.
Official NPS source
Dan Morford, Superintendent of both Scotts Bluff National Monument and Agate Fossil Beds National Monument is set to retire on December 31st.
Official NPS source
Last Saturday, September 23, 2023, Agate Fossil Beds National Monument proudly concluded its summer programming with a fascinating presentation by Sam Wright, Lab Manager at the Museum of Geology at South Dakota School of Mines. As the final speaker in a season brimming with educational and entertaining events, Sam brought the world of fossil excavation to life, allowing visitors to delve into the secrets of our prehistoric past.
Official NPS source
The kids may be back in school, but Agate Fossil Beds National Monument is offering one more month of fun “summer” events. A Landscape Astrophotography class will be on Saturday, September 9th from 7-11pm. The park will host a Trail Clean-Up on Monday, September 11th from 9am-12pm. Finally, South Dakota School of Mines Paleontology Lab Manager, Sam Wright, will present “Vertebrate Fossil Preparation: Tools and Techniques” on Saturday, September 23rd at 1pm.
Official NPS source
This weekend, Agate Fossil Beds National Monument brings back the cultural demonstrator program after a 3-year hiatus. Jina Powless-Red Nest will be the first guest of honor to get the program re-started. She will demonstrate and sell her artwork from 9am-5pm Friday – Sunday, August 18-20th.
Official NPS source
After so many rain showers this season, it’s time for a meteor shower instead! It’s time for the Perseids Meteor Shower, and there’s no better place to ‘catch a falling star’ than your local National Park Service dark sky site. Visitors can catch these shooting stars at Agate Fossil Beds National Monument on Saturday night, August 12th, from 7:30 – 11pm.
Official NPS source
Agate Fossil Beds National Monument will host Badlands National Park Ranger and Paleontologist Ed Welsh for his presentation, "Agate Fossil Beds and the Rise of the American Serengeti" on Saturday, July 22, 2023.
Official NPS source
Agate Fossil Beds National Monument hosted its first campout on the weekend of July 24, 2023. Over 30 visitors roasted s'mores, listened to stories, and stargazed into Agate's famously dark night sky.
Official NPS source
Summer hours and programs are here! Agate Fossil Beds National Monument will now be open from 9am - 5pm daily through September 30. Join us for both informal and formal programs with cultural demonstrations, night sky viewing, paleontology talks, birthday parties, and more!
Official NPS source
Agate Fossil Beds celebrates National Park Week 2023 with 2 amazing events. A night sky program on Saturday, April 22nd and a poetry reading with Nebraska state poet, Matt Mason, on Sunday, April 30th.
Official NPS source
Hundreds of visitors participated in the 2023 Junior Ranger Careers Day at Scotts Bluff National Monument. The event was co-hosted with Agate Fossil Beds National Monument. Rangers from both parks were on hand to demonstrate their unique job tasks for their particular Park Ranger title.
Official NPS source
Agate Fossil Beds & Scotts Bluff National Monuments celebrate Junior Ranger Day 2023 a little early this year. Enjoy hands-on activities at 6 stations that explore the different careers under the title of Park Ranger. Hope to see you at Scotts Bluff National Monument on Saturday, April 8th from 10-2pm.
Official NPS source
Many visitors had a blast exploring hands-on science experiments on Saturday. Agate Fossil Representatives from Oglala Lakota College brought the experiments to Agate Fossil Beds in recognition of National Science Education Day.
Official NPS source
Paleontologists Kristin Watmore and Kate LoMedico Marriott present their research on a recorded YouTube Premiere and online Q&A. Ms. Watmore discusses her ongoing research into the Miocene epoch camels. Ms. LoMedico Marriott shares her love for ammonites particularly in the Pierre Shale near Agate.
Official NPS source
Join Agate Fossil Beds National Monument for an online video premiere event! It's International Women & Girls in Science Day so, Paleontologist Kristin Watmore will talk about her new research on Miocene mammals from Agate. Join us Saturday, February 11th at 1pm online at www.youtube.com/@AgateFossilBedsNPS.
Official NPS source
Thank you to the amazing volunteers who participated in the MLK Service Day event at Agate Fossil Beds National Monument. They sifted through boxes of old photographs of the Agate Springs Ranch, and the surrounding area.
Official NPS source
Individuals with family who lived in Sioux County in the late 1800s/early 1900s, or who love historical photographs, or who love helping their National Parks have a unique opportunity to volunteer at Agate Fossil Beds National Monument on Monday, January 16, 2023 from 10-12pm.
Official NPS source
Are you a collector of the NPS park brochures? You must check out the unique audio described version! Staff at Agate Fossil Beds National Monument participated in a Descriptathon and now have an audio described version of the park brochure. It's available on our website and the UniDescription app,
Official NPS source
Winter Hours of Operation start October 1! The visitor center and museum will be open 8a - 4p daily until summer hours return May 15.
Official NPS source
Ever wanted to know how the amazing Milky Way pictures from Dark Sky Parks are created? Ever wanted to catch the Space Station or meteors on camera? Join Agate Fossil Beds' night sky rangers Sunday September 5th from 7 p.m. to 10:30 p.m for a free seminar on landscape astrophotography! It’s a fun and artistic hobby that almost anyone can enjoy, without expensive telescopes and tracking mounts.
Official NPS source