College of Science

Housed in the Elouise Cobell Land and Culture Institute, UM’s planetarium is known as the Star Gazing Room in the Payne Family Native American Center (PFNAC). Student planetarium presenters learn science communication by designing and presenting live shows for school, public, and private groups.

The ECOR Labs (Environmental Control for Organismal Research Laboratories) provide scientists with the ability to independently control and manipulate light, temperature, humidity, CO2, and other factors. Built with generous funding from the Murdock Charitable Trust and matching funds from the University of Montana Office of Research and Sponsored Programs.  The ECOR facilities are available to all faculty, students, and staff at the University of Montana, as well as regional scientists (as space allows).

The Flight Laboratory is housed at the Field Research Station at Fort Missoula, which consists of 1100 m2 (12,000 sq. ft) of fully-modernized space with 10 laboratories, 8 offices (5 with double-occupant capacity), 6 rooms for animal housing, a surgical procedure room, and two environmental rooms.

The MONTU Herbarium is the largest collection in the State of Montana with over 135,000 collections of vascular plants, lichens, bryophytes, diatoms, algae, and seeds. It serves as the primary reference and data source in the region for botanists, land managers, and conservation organizations. Some agencies include the U. S. Forest Service and the Montana Natural Heritage Program. The collections are used for undergraduate courses, and by graduate students, professors, consultants, and visiting researchers.

The Philip Wright Zoological Collection (UMZM) began in 1897 and is the repository for vertebrate specimens collected by University of Montana researchers, as well as specimens from the Montana Natural Heritage Program, the Montana Natural History Center, Flathead Lake Biological Station, the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, and various affiliated researchers and groups in the region. While the UMZM focuses on birds and mammals of the northern Rocky Mountains, it is also home to scientifically and educationally valuable specimens from around the world. The museum has a growing number of tissues, parasites, photographs, and other materials for documenting and studying patterns of biodiversity across space and through time.

The BioSpectroscopy Core Research Laboratory (BCRL) provides researchers with advanced tools and expertise for time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy, single-molecule spectroscopy, and fluorescence imaging. We offer access to well-maintained, state-of-the art instruments, training for all experience levels, and expert support in assay design, data collection, and analysis to help investigators generate high-quality, insightful results.