Member Preview October 19–20  |  Open to the public October 21

The Journey to Space exhibition will take you as close to being in space as you can get without leaving Earth. It’s an incredible and unforgettable hands-on, climb-aboard cosmic adventure of science fun and learning that you can’t find anywhere else. You’ll experience the sights, sounds, and smells on board an orbiting space station, and find out first-hand just what it takes to be an astronaut working in the hostile environment of space.

This exhibit is presented in English and Spanish.
Esta exposición se presenta en inglés y español.

Getting to Space

Space is not a friendly place. Your spacecraft can protect you from the vacuum, but watch out for the meteoroids! You’ll get to see the impact a meteoroid can have on a spaceship and examine the hole it creates in a thick metal plate, then launch a water rocket into the air to see just how much pressure it takes to get to space.

See How Astronauts Live

Feed your curiosity by listening to real astronauts describe the quirks and serious challenges of living and working in space. Routine things like eating, going to the bathroom, and exercising are a lot different there than on Earth. Sit on a space toilet and examine real space food.

Experience Weightlessness

Climb aboard our research lab that not only looks like the real thing, but feels like it! The Destiny Lab is modeled after the research lab attached to the International Space Station and will rotate around you during a four-minute tour. The disorientation the rotation causes simulates the feeling that many astronauts experience during their first days in space.

Work in Space

Do the work of astronauts as you control a robot arm, manage a space station’s energy system, and discover why wearing a space glove is so challenging. Experiment with centripetal force, a method of creating artificial gravity, which might one day change the way we live in space.

All Ages

The Space exhibit is full of amazing science fun and learning for all ages. While adults and older children can learn about and experience, first hand, the technical challenges and accomplishments space travel presents, a specially designed “space dollhouse” will entertain and teach the youngest visitors about life on board the International Space Station. They can even construct colony for future Mars inhabitants!