Bell Museum
Bell Museum is Minnesota's official natural history museum and planetarium on the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus, serving families, K-12 schools, homeschoolers, and researchers through exhibits, a fulldome planetarium, educational programs, and original productions distributed globally.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1872
- HeadquartersSaint Paul, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Bell Museum does
Bell Museum is Minnesota's official natural history museum and planetarium, founded in 1872 and operated as a department within the University of Minnesota's College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS). The museum relocated to its current facility on the UMN Twin Cities campus in Saint Paul in 2018, anchored by the Whitney and Elizabeth MacMillan Planetarium, the Minnesota Journeys permanent exhibit featuring world-famous wildlife dioramas, the Touch & See Lab with 10,000-year-old fossils and living specimens, and a five-acre outdoor Learning Landscape. It maintains an art and film collection of over 1,500 works and operates the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas, an online research database spanning birds, mammals, fishes, plants, and fungi.
The museum runs a diversified content and education platform. Its Bell Planetarium Productions unit develops original fulldome films (including Secrets from a Forest, Mars: The Ultimate Voyage, and Mysteries of Your Brain) that are licensed internationally to other planetariums through distributors such as RSA Cosmos, SSIA Technologies, Sky-Skan, and Creative Planet. Revenue is generated through unit-priced admissions ($12-$14), annual memberships ($8-$10), private event and venue rentals, the on-site Curiosity Shop, and donations including corporate, individual, and planned giving. Programming is event-driven: public programs, seasonal events, star parties, summer and winter camps, homeschool days, teen science cafés, traveling planetarium outreach (Exploradome), and K-12 field trips that serve schools and community groups statewide.
Customer segments are distributed across general public and families, K-12 schools and educators, homeschool families, teenagers in grades 7-12, and university researchers and citizen scientists. Strategic partnerships with NASA (TEAM II Award), the University of North Carolina Morehead Planetarium, the Minnesota Orchestra, Ravenwood Studios UK, and the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community support both content production and culturally grounded programming. The museum employs 121 people and operates a single physical site, with statewide engagement initiatives extending programmatic reach across Minnesota.
Bell Museum firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Bell Museum
- Legal name
- Regents of the University of Minnesota
- Website
- https://bellmuseum.umn.edu
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1872
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Bell Museum is Minnesota's official natural history museum and planetarium on the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus, serving families, K-12 schools, homeschoolers, and researchers through exhibits, a fulldome planetarium, educational programs, and original productions distributed globally.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Bell Museum industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Natural History Museum and Planetarium
- NAICS
- Museums (712110)
- SIC
- Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Natural History Museums (THAJADAC)
Keywords
Where Bell Museum is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Saint Paul
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Bell Museum business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Admission and Membership: Ticket sales for museum admission and planetarium shows, plus membership programs offering free unlimited access and member-only events
- Retail Sales: The Curiosity Shop sells science-themed souvenirs and merchandise; proceeds support museum programs, collections, and education efforts
- Private Events and Rentals: Venue rentals for private events including weddings, corporate events, and group gatherings
- Donations and Charitable Giving: Individual donations, corporate giving, planned giving, and charitable contributions supporting museum programs and initiatives
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard Admission with Planetarium |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard Admission without Planetarium |
| Subscription | Annual | Member Admission with Planetarium |
| Subscription | Annual | Member Admission without Planetarium |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Homeschool Day with Planetarium |
| Subscription | Annual | Homeschool Day Member with Planetarium |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Bell Museum product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Bell Museum operates Minnesota's official natural history museum and planetarium, delivering immersive educational experiences through the Whitney and Elizabeth MacMillan Planetarium, permanent wildlife dioramas in the Minnesota Journeys exhibit, the interactive Touch & See Lab, a five-acre Learning Landscape, and a slate of K-12 field trips, summer/winter camps, homeschool days, star parties, and traveling planetarium outreach. It also produces original fulldome films through Bell Planetarium Productions, which are licensed internationally to other planetariums. Revenue is generated through admissions, memberships, retail, private event rentals, donations, and grants.
Product overview
The Bell Museum is Minnesota's official natural history museum and planetarium, operating as a unified visitor experience with interconnected physical and digital offerings. The core experience centers on the Whitney and Elizabeth MacMillan Planetarium for immersive astronomy shows and the Minnesota Journeys permanent exhibit featuring world-famous wildlife dioramas. Supporting offerings include the Touch & See Lab with interactive specimens, the Learning Landscape outdoor nature gallery, and the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas online database. The museum's Bell Planetarium Productions unit creates original fulldome films (Secrets from a Forest, Mars: The Ultimate Voyage, Mysteries of Your Brain) distributed internationally to other planetariums. Educational programs span K-12 field trips, summer/winter camps, the traveling Exploradome planetarium, Star Parties, and the Spotlight Science series. The museum is part of the University of Minnesota's College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) and is held in trust since 1872.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Whitney and Elizabeth MacMillan Planetarium State-of-the-art planetarium offering immersive star shows, fulldome films, and astronomy programming for visitors of all ages. Features fulldome projection technology and shows original and licensed planetarium content.
- Minnesota Journeys Exhibit Permanent exhibit gallery taking visitors through Minnesota's natural history and biodiversity with world-famous wildlife dioramas covering Minnesota's ecosystems and species.
- Touch & See Lab Interactive laboratory featuring 10,000-year-old fossils, living plants and animals, and hands-on science activities for visitor engagement with natural history specimens.
- Learning Landscape Five-acre outdoor nature gallery featuring wildflowers, native trees, a pond, geology gardens, and sustainability features including a green roof, observation deck, and solar station.
- Exploradome (Traveling Planetarium) Mobile planetarium bringing immersive astronomy experiences to schools and community groups throughout Minnesota, available for booking as an outreach program.
- Bell Planetarium Productions Original fulldome film productions created by the Bell Museum for planetariums worldwide, including award-winning shows like Secrets from a Forest, Mars: The Ultimate Voyage, and Mysteries of Your Brain. Licensed internationally through distributors including RSA Cosmos, SSIA Technologies, Sky-Skan, and Creative Planet.
- Secrets from a Forest Fulldome planetarium production telling the story of the relationship between nature and art through a Stradivarius violin, featuring award-winning cinematography with the Minnesota Orchestra.
- Mars: The Ultimate Voyage Planetarium show exploring what the first journey to Mars might look like, created in collaboration with NASA and University of North Carolina Morehead Planetarium and Science Center.
- Mysteries of Your Brain Animated planetarium show following a girl and her crow companion exploring the human brain, created in collaboration with the University of North Carolina Morehead Planetarium.
- Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Online database merging data on birds, mammals, fishes, plants, and fungi for research and education purposes, accessible to researchers, students, and the public.
- K-12 Field Trips and Educational Programs Curriculum-aligned educational experiences including guided tours, hands-on labs, planetarium shows, and outreach programs for school groups at discounted rates.
- Summer and Winter Camps Science-focused day camps for children offering hands-on activities, experiments, and exploration of natural history topics during summer and winter breaks.
- Star Parties Evening astronomy events featuring telescope observations, planetarium shows, hands-on activities, and educational programming for all ages.
- On Native Land Program Educational programs exploring Minnesota's natural history through Ojibwe and Dakhóta traditional ecological ways of knowing, funded by Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community.
- Bell Museum Membership Annual membership program offering free unlimited access to museum galleries, invitations to special member events, discounted planetarium admission, and other benefits.
- Curiosity Shop Museum gift shop offering science-themed souvenirs and gifts, with proceeds supporting museum programs, collections, and education efforts.
- Private Events and Venue Rentals Event space rentals for weddings, corporate events, and private gatherings at the museum facility.
Quantifiable outcome
- Janus Award for Best Fulldome Feature 2024
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Bell Museum
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Bell Museum technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Bell Museum partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.
- NASAcoreNASA TEAM II Award (80NSSC20M0028) funded the creation of 'Mars: The Ultimate Voyage' planetarium show, exploring challenges of human space travel to Mars including astronaut health and motivation during a 2-year deep space journey.
- University of North Carolina Morehead Planetarium and Science CentercoreCollaborated on 'Mars: The Ultimate Voyage' and 'Mysteries of Your Brain' planetarium productions, combining expertise in fulldome film production and science education.
- Minnesota OrchestracoreFeatured members of the Minnesota Orchestra in the award-winning 'Secrets from a Forest' planetarium production, performing pieces including Vivaldi's The Four Seasons.
- Ravenwood Studios UKcoreNature documentary filmmaking studio led by Neil Lucas, collaborating on 'Secrets from a Forest' and upcoming 'Shadows of the Sun' fulldome productions. Developed innovative live-action filming techniques for dome projection.
- Minnesota Historical Society - Jeffers PetroglyphssupportingAnnual Minnesota Unearthed event partnership bringing Indigenous perspectives, fossil displays, and atlatl throwing activities to museum visitors.
- Minnesota Ornithologists' UnionsupportingMonthly guided birding walks on the Learning Landscape; MOU donates bird feeding stations to support citizen science observation.
- 10th Wave Chamber Music CollectivesupportingTwin Cities chamber music collective co-presenting The Urban Ecosystem concert, pairing contemporary music with urban ecology research.
- MSP LTER (Minneapolis-St. Paul Long-Term Ecological Research)coreCollaboration with 100+ researchers from University of Minnesota and partner institutions studying urban ecosystems; co-presented The Urban Ecosystem music performance connecting ecological research with artistic expression.
- Minnesota Geological SurveysupportingPartner in annual Minnesota Unearthed event, providing geology expertise and connecting visitors to state geological resources.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Bell Museum competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Denver Museum of Nature & Science: Regional natural history and science museum comparable in scale and footprint (including IMAX/planetarium programming) to the Bell Museum.
- Field Museum: Chicago natural history museum with comparable dioramas, scientific collections, and research integration serving as a state-level natural history anchor in the upper Midwest.
- California Academy of Sciences: San Francisco natural history institution that combines natural history, planetarium (Morrison Planetarium), and research under one roof — a near-exact structural analogue to the Bell Museum.
- Morehead Planetarium and Science Center (UNC): University-affiliated planetarium and co-production partner on Bell's 'Mars: The Ultimate Voyage' and 'Mysteries of Your Brain' productions, with direct comparable fulldome production operations.
- Science Museum of Minnesota: Twin Cities-based science and natural history museum with an Omnitheater, the most direct geographic and programmatic comparator to the Bell Museum's combined natural history + planetarium model.
- Adler Planetarium: Chicago-based planetarium that operates fulldome film production and licensing, the most direct comparator to Bell Planetarium Productions' content business model.
- Carnegie Museum of Natural History: Mid-tier natural history museum anchored to a research university (Carnegie Mellon/University of Pittsburgh), comparable to Bell's UMN affiliation and similar scale of dioramas and collections.
Broad incumbents
- American Museum of Natural History: The largest natural history museum in the world, serving as the gold-standard reference for natural history curation, dioramas, and permanent exhibits comparable to Bell's Minnesota Journeys.
- Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History: National natural history museum with research collections and educational programming that benchmarks large-scale natural history institution operations.
- Museum of Science, Boston: Major science museum with extensive K-12 educational programming and an IMAX-style theater, comparable to Bell's blend of science exhibits and large-format visual programming.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Bell Museum social profiles
Digital presenceBell Museum financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Bell Museum leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Bell Museum funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Bell Museum M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Bell Museum
What does Bell Museum do?
The Bell Museum operates Minnesota's official natural history museum and planetarium, delivering immersive educational experiences through the Whitney and Elizabeth MacMillan Planetarium, permanent wildlife dioramas in the Minnesota Journeys exhibit, the interactive Touch & See Lab, a five-acre Learning Landscape, and a slate of K-12 field trips, summer/winter camps, homeschool days, star parties, and traveling planetarium outreach. It also produces original fulldome films through Bell Planetarium Productions, which are licensed internationally to other planetariums. Revenue is generated through admissions, memberships, retail, private event rentals, donations, and grants.
Is Bell Museum a public or private company?
Bell Museum is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently operating.
When was Bell Museum founded?
Bell Museum was founded in 1872. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Bell Museum based?
Bell Museum is headquartered in Saint Paul, United States, in the North America region.
How does Bell Museum make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Admission and Membership is the primary driver. The others are retail Sales, private Events and Rentals and donations and Charitable Giving.
Who are Bell Museum's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Denver Museum of Nature & Science, Field Museum, California Academy of Sciences, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center (UNC), Science Museum of Minnesota, Adler Planetarium and Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Broad incumbents are American Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and Museum of Science, Boston.
Does Bell Museum have an API?
No public API is recorded for Bell Museum.
What industry is Bell Museum in?
Bell Museum's product category is Natural History Museum and Planetarium. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAJADAC, Natural History Museums. Its NAICS code is 712110 and its SIC code is 7900.