As temperatures rise in Moab, the Moab Museum team is hard at work behind the scenes. While June brings a brief pause in public programming, our focus has shifted to finalizing and printing the second phase of U92: Moab’s Uranium Legacy – Aftermath, the concluding chapter of our in-depth exploration of the region’s uranium history. Opening Saturday, July 19, this next phase of the exhibition broadens the story beyond the uranium boom, delving into the lasting impacts and present-day questions surrounding this powerful element.

The new section of the exhibition, U92: Aftermath, explores the complex and ongoing effects of uranium extraction on communities, landscapes, and policy. After the initial excitement and economic promise of the uranium boom, the region—and the world—has faced a sobering reality. Human health, Indigenous lifeways, and fragile ecosystems have all suffered from poorly regulated mining and milling practices.

At the same time, uranium is increasingly promoted as a key component of the clean energy movement. So what does responsible extraction look like today? U92: Aftermath poses critical questions: What have we learned? What safeguards are in place to ensure that future use of this powerful mineral benefits all communities and protects these remarkable lands?

The Moab Museum is honored to launch the second phase of the exhibition with a presentation by Dr. Tommy Rock, an environmental scientist and citizen of the Navajo Nation. Dr. Rock will speak at the Museum on the afternoon of Saturday, July 19. This free public event will highlight his research on uranium contamination across the Colorado Plateau and its far-reaching impacts on Native communities—particularly the Navajo people, many of whom worked in the mines or lived near uranium milling sites.

Dr. Rock brings a deeply personal perspective to this topic. Born and raised in Monument Valley, Utah, he is the first in his family to earn a doctoral degree. His academic and professional path—from Arizona State University to Northern Arizona University, the University of New Mexico, and now Princeton—has focused on the intersection of environmental sustainability, public health, and Indigenous perspectives. His research sheds light on the real-life impacts of uranium mining on tribal lands and advocates for culturally informed policies grounded in Traditional Ecological Knowledge.

With U92: Aftermath, the Museum seeks to offer visitors a deeper, more nuanced understanding of uranium’s lasting legacy. We invite both community members and visitors to explore the new exhibition and attend the opening presentation by Dr. Tommy Rock, whose insight and lived experience provide essential context to the ongoing story of uranium in Moab and across the region.

Stay tuned throughout the summer as we continue to offer new opportunities to engage with the region’s past and present. U92: Aftermath opens July 19. Join us for this important milestone in the Museum’s ongoing mission to illuminate Moab’s complex and layered history.


For more information and tickets, visit  moabmuseum.org

. The Moab Museum will once again participate in Blue Star Museums, a program offering free admission to currently serving military personnel and their families this summer from Armed Forces Day, May 17, 2025, through Labor Day, September 1, 2025. As always, veterans still receive a 20% discounted admission rate at the Moab Museum. Discounts are available for students and seniors as well as SNAP EBT card holders via our participation with Museums for All.

At the Museum, we aim to introduce as many folks to the history of our area as possible and we have free passes to the Museum available at the Grand County Public Library, available to check out. Reach out to learn more about free and discounted admission and how a membership might work for you!

About Blue Star Museums:
Blue Star Museums is a partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts and Blue Star Families, in collaboration with the Department of Defense, and participating museums across America.

For a list of participating museums,
visit arts.gov/BlueStarMuseums.

The free admission program is available for those currently serving in the United States Military—Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, Navy, and Space Force, members of the Reserves, National Guard, U.S. Public Health Commissioned Corps, NOAA Commissioned Corps—and up to five family members. Qualified members must show a Geneva Convention common access card (CAC), DD Form 1173 ID card (dependent ID), DD Form 1173-1 ID card or the Next Generation Uniformed Services (Real) ID card for entrance into a participating Blue Star Museum.