The Hami Pterosaur Museum, a new tourist attraction in north-west China's Gobi Desert, has opened, showcasing hundreds of fossils of ancient flying reptiles. The building's design allows it to operate sustainably in an extremely harsh environment, where summer air temperatures can exceed 55C and winter temperatures can drop below -20C.
Most of the 8,000-square-metre museum is built 8 metres underground, which helps regulate temperatures. This design, along with natural ventilation shafts, is estimated to cut electricity usage for air conditioning by 94% compared to an above-ground building. Giant translucent funnels also reduce the need for artificial lighting by nearly 50%.
The museum features its own micro power grid, including a solar farm located about 1km away, which is expected to generate enough electricity to meet the museum's demand. It also has an on-site system to collect, process, and reuse grey water.
Wang Xiaolin, the museum's director, stated that building the museum in the Hami region is scientifically important because this is where the fossils were discovered. This approach protects the fragile relics and allows visitors to see them in their geological context.