[19] The Neoclassical style building was the first structure constructed on the north side of the National Mall as part of the 1901 McMillan Commission plan.

[25] J. Dennis O'Connor, provost of the Smithsonian Institution (where he oversaw all science and research programs) was named acting director of the museum on July 25, 2001.

[27] Douglas Erwin, a paleontologist at the National Museum of Natural History, was appointed interim director in June 2002.

[32] On March 25, 2007, Lawrence M. Small, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and the organization's highest-ranking appointed official, resigned abruptly after public reports of lavish spending.

[34] Paul G. Risser, former chancellor of the University of Oklahoma, was named acting director of the Museum of Natural History on March 29.

[35] In May 2007, Robert Sullivan, the former associate director in charge of exhibitions at the National Museum of Natural History, charged that Samper and Smithsonian Undersecretary for Science David Evans (Samper's supervisor) ordered "last minute"[36] changes in the exhibit "Arctic: A Friend Acting Strangely" to tone down the role of human beings in the discussion of global warming, and to make global warming seem more uncertain than originally depicted.

[37] In November 2007, The Washington Post reported that an interagency group of scientists from the Department of the Interior, NASA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and National Science Foundation believed that, despite Samper's denial, the museum "acted to avoid criticism from congressional appropriators and global-warming skeptics in the Bush administration".

"[36] Although the exhibit was due to open in October 2005, the Post reported that Samper ordered a six-month delay to allow for even further changes.

A few weeks later, a NOAA climate researcher advised a superior that the delay was due to "the debate within the administration and the science community over the existence and cause of global warming".

[36] During the delay, Samper asked high-level officials in other government agencies and departments to review the script for the exhibit, ordered his museum staff to make additional changes, and rearranged the sequence of the exhibit panels so that the discussion of climate change was not immediately encountered by museum visitors.

[36] In an interview with The Washington Post in November 2007, Samper said he felt the exhibit displayed a scientific certainty that did not exist, and expressed his belief that the museum should present evidence on both sides and let the public make up its own mind.

[38] Risser resigned as acting director of the museum on January 22, 2008, in order to return to his position at the University of Oklahoma.

[41] The museum celebrated the 50th anniversary of its acquisition of the Hope Diamond in August 2009 by giving the gemstone its own exhibit and a new setting.

[43] In January 2012, Samper said he was stepping down from the National Museum of Natural History to become president and chief executive officer of the Wildlife Conservation Society.

[46] On July 25, 2012, Kirk Johnson, vice president of research and collections at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, was named Samper's successor effective October 29, 2012.

[56] Other facilities include a marine science center in Ft. Pierce, Florida and field stations in Belize, Alaska, and Kenya.

[61] The collection is displayed in the Janet Annenberg Hooker Hall of Geology, Gems and Minerals, one of the many galleries in the Museum of Natural History.

This Triceratops exhibit shows the first accurate dinosaur skeleton in virtual motion, achieved through the use of scanning and digital technology.

[72] In June 2013, the Smithsonian obtained a 50-year lease on a T. rex fossil skeleton owned by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

The specimen, known as the "Wankel" or "Devil" rex,[73] was found on Corps-owned land in the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge in Montana in 1988.

[74] The Museum of the Rockies (which did not own the skeleton but was the repository for it) has about a dozen T. rex specimens, including one which is eighty percent complete.

Different habitats have been created to show the type of insects that live in different environments and how they have adapted to a freshwater pond, house, mangrove swamp, desert, and rain forest.

The collection includes: a North Atlantic right whale, a giant Lion's mane jellyfish model, a 1,500-US-gallon (5,700 L) aquarium containing live marine fish and corals, one female giant squid displayed in the center of the hall and a male displayed off to the side, an adult coelenterate, and a Basilosaurus.

[81] The museum also provides the Smithsonian Ocean Portal, a complementary web site that provides regularly updated, original content from the museum's research, collections, and Sant Ocean Hall as well as content provided by more than 20 collaborating organizations, including Archive, Census of Marine Life, Consortium for Ocean Leadership, Encyclopedia of Life, INDUCT, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, National Geographic, NOAA, New England Aquarium, Ocean Conservancy, Oceania, Pew Charitable Trusts, Sea Web, Save Our Seas, Scrips Institution of Oceanography, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, World Heritage Marine Programmer.

This exhibit and associated website "examines the diversity, dynamism, and global influence of Africa's peoples and cultures over time in the realms of family, work, community, and the natural environment.

[83] "This hall explores some examples from various cultures in the western world including northern Iraq, ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome and the recent discovery of the Iceman, a Copper Age mummy found in an Italian glacier.

The Korea Gallery was a special showcase to celebrate Korean traditions and examine its unique influence and complex role in the world today.

Traditional art forms, such as ceramics and calligraphy, along with mythological figures, language, large feature photographs and illustrations spoke to a range of shared historical memories which connected Koreans at home and abroad.

Personal stories of modern Koreans, as told in their own voices, provide a context to discuss some of the many issues that face the divided country today.

Korea's incredible transformation from 'The Hermit Kingdom' to a world power is traced through its impact on the arts, the economy and popular culture.