“Eighty-five million years ago, while dinosaurs roamed the earth, Kansas was a shallow ocean, swarming with fanged sea monsters. Today, those toothy creatures can still be found in Overland Park.

Well, in a museum, at least…”

Excerpt: “For drivers zooming down 135th Street, the sharp-angled museum is a spectacular sight, with the building’s vibrant glass colors changing throughout the day.

Inspired by the sizzling red, orange and glowing blue hues of Kansas prairie fires, developer Fred Merrill, of Merrill Co., and Boston-based architect Verner Johnson Inc. took a unique approach to the building’s design by incorporating dichroic glass.

The material, developed by NASA, is a glass that undergoes color change with the help of different angles and thin film.

…Although the material is used in architecture around the globe, the Museum at Prairiefire was the first building in the United States to use it.”