• The dunes in soft light

    White Sands

    National Monument New Mexico

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  • Closures and Missile Tests

    Upcoming Missile Tests: From time to time the missile range that surrounds us performs missile testing that may require the closure of the park or Highway 70. Please follow the link below for up to date information on closures More »

Your Dollars At Work

user fee logo

Ever wonder where all those park entrance fee dollars go? Well, 80% of them stay right here at White Sands National Monument! The other 20% goes into a common fund that helps support parks that do not charge entrance fees.

The money collected from entrance fees makes it possible for us to fund projects that improve visitor use and enjoyment. It also helps us present educational programs, maintain a safe environment for visitors, and preserve the monument's natural resources.

Take a look at the gallery below for the most recent use of visitor entrance fees to improve the visitor center. Among the changes, a new native plant garden was planted in front of the visitor center so that visitors can see what types of vegetation around the dunefield.

 
  • The Old Geology Display
    New Exhibits
    12 Photos

Did You Know?

Photo of sand avalanching

While the wind piles the sand grains into dunes, the dunes move forward under the force of gravity. As the leading edge of the dune ("slipface") gets steeper, gravity pulls an avalanche of sand down the slipface, moving the dune forward.