After Years in the Field, Explorers Club Flag Returns

By Olivia Barney

Humans, by nature, are explorers. Our curiosity exudes from us as we travel to new places, encounter new cultures, and even as we google answers to obscure questions that we can’t stop thinking about. 

The spirit of exploration has led humans to the moon and the bottom of the ocean. It’s what has fueled our continued efforts to understand the people and places around us, despite any obstacles faced along the way.

Indeed, curious exploration is part of what makes us human.

Adventure with a Purpose

In 1904, a club was formed with a mission to foster this boundless spirit of exploration, along with a dedication to the “advancement of field research, scientific exploration and resource conservation.” It’s called The Explorers Club; and, in the 122 years since its founding, has reached an international level of prestige. 

Carrie Levitt-Bussian holds the Explorers Club flag in front of the Explorers Club headquarters in New York City.

Though it sounds like something that might exist in a Hollywood adventure movie, its members are far from the stereotypical treasure hunters of these films. They’re scientific researchers and explorers at the top of their fields, conducting research that is vital to understanding our world. Membership within the club is a huge honor, as is the opportunity to carry an Explorers Club flag during an expedition.

Carrying the club’s emblem in this way indicates that your work is more than noteworthy. You’re producing new information for future generations to learn from and honoring the original spirit of exploration.

Relatively few scientists and researchers will become members of The Explorers Club, and even fewer will receive the honor of carrying the club’s flag — which is typically only granted for prestigious, ground-breaking expeditions. For a bit of perspective, it’s been taken to both the North and South Poles, the top of Mount Everest, the bottom of the Mariana Trench, and even to the moon. Most recently, the Explorers Club flag was taken on NASA’s Artemis II space expedition, which returned to Earth on April 10, 2026.

But the story that hasn’t yet hit headlines comes from right here in Utah, where an Explorers Club flag has flown for nearly a decade at a groundbreaking dinosaur excavation site.

The Spirit of Exploration Lives in Utah

Utah is a paradise for paleontologists. With its unparalleled fossil record, interesting prehistoric species are excavated each year. But only one site has such scientific and historic importance to have been granted a flag.

Carrie Levitt-Bussian rappels from the Dystrophaeus dig site with the Explorers Club flag. Photo by Dr. Randy Irmis

Carrie Levitt-Bussian is the Natural History Museum of Utah’s Paleontology Collections Manager, a pioneering woman in science, and a proud member of The Explorers Club. For the last decade or so, Levitt-Bussian, along with her colleagues Drs. John Foster and Randy Irmis, have led teams of NHMU paleontologists and volunteers to the site of Dystrophaeus, continuing a discovery made 167 years earlier.

In 1859, John Strong Newberry joined the United States Army on a survey mission, working to investigate and describe parts of the West. While there, Newberry discovered fossil fragments near the edge of a steep, sandstone cliff. Though he collected the few pieces of bone that were accessible, Newberry was forced to leave the rest of the specimen behind. Dystrophaeus, as it would later be named, was hidden out of his reach.

Lacking the technology and resources to excavate such a large species from the side of a cliff, Newberry wrote that Dystrophaeus “...still remains to reward some future geologist who shall visit this interesting locality, with more time at his command and more adequate implements for rock excavation than we possessed.”

Carrie Levitt-Bussian became one of those future geologists, picking up the torch Newberry lit.

Her excavation work began in 2015, 154 years after the initial discovery of the Dystrophaeus site. There, the team came to understand Newberry’s words in a new way. Accessible only by a vertical cliff wall, the excavation site hovered 250 feet above the ground. It required the use of climbing gear helicopter support, and a whole lot of enthusiasm to counter the harsh terrain and intense heat.

Fortunately, this team had enthusiasm in spades. As they excavated more of the species each year, Levitt-Bussian realized that this project was bigger than a single dinosaur — it was a piece of paleontological history, a key for understanding life 156 million years ago, and an opportunity to show the world why her work mattered. 

Closing the Chapter on Dystrophaeus

Carrie Levitt-Bussian gives remarks during her returning of the flag ceremony at the Explorers Club.

In 2017, Levitt-Bussian was granted the honor of carrying an Explorers Club flag throughout the duration of the Dystrophaeus excavation. The project took an additional eight years, finally concluding in October of 2025, but she has faithfully carried flag #203 the whole way.

Last week, Levitt-Bussian traveled to New York City to close the excavation chapter of the Dystrophaeus story — though the scientific research will continue. On April 19, 2026, she participated in a special ceremony, returning flag #203 to its home at The Explorers Club headquarters. There, she reflected on a story that began so long ago, proudly telling the world why exploration is vital. As she stood at that podium, she thought of the other groundbreaking explorers who had stood there before her, including the late Jane Goodall. It was a poignant moment for Levitt-Bussian, her family, and her colleagues back at NHMU (who were celebrating her from 2,100 miles away).

We offer our congratulations to Carrie Levitt-Bussian on such a remarkable honor, which showcases her exemplary efforts and the spirit of exploration that she emanates.

To learn more about why Dystrophaeus is such a remarkable species, and to hear Levitt-Bussian’s perspective on this project, watch the video below.