Los Angeles, CA (15 July 2024) – The California Science Center offers numerous options for family-friendly fun and learning throughout the summer, with free general admission, multiple IMAX movies, and new exhibitions. Selected highlights include:

NEW and now open: Work in Progress Gallery: FREE, no reservations required:

The Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center Work in Progress gallery offers a sneak peek at new artifacts planned for the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center while reliving past milestones of Space Shuttle Endeavour’s historic arrival and dramatic stacking process. While Endeavour is off exhibit, guests will have the opportunity to explore select new space artifacts, view construction progress through time-lapse imagery and learn more about the future Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center. Gallery highlights include:

• SpaceX Dragon Cargo Spacecraft, on public display for the first time in California. This vehicle was the first to reach orbit three times and spent almost 99 days in space in support of NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services missions. The Dragon cargo spacecraft delivers crucial supplies, experiments, and equipment to astronauts aboard the space station, ensuring continued scientific research and human presence in space.

• Rocket Lab Electron Rocket, a small orbital-class rocket used to deliver satellites to Earth’s orbit. This 60-foot rocket uses a cluster of 10 Rutherford engines, designed and 3D printed locally in Long Beach, CA.

On view publicly in California for the first time, both the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft and the Rocket Lab Electron rocket are examples of the commercial sector’s commitment to space exploration.

Ecosystems: FREE, no reservations, highlights include:

• The giant Kelp Forest where guests can join a Q&A session with a diver to learn more about these underwater forests and the animals that live there.
• The Rocky Shore includes a touch tank where visitors discover how sea life survives harsh conditions and can touch a creature or two.
• The Desert with live animals including a desert tortoise, scorpions, fennec foxes, among others.

Additional zones in the Ecosystems gallery include Poles, Deep-Sea Vents, Island Zone, River Zone, L.A. Zone, and Global Zone – all with interactive elements to explore.

World of Life: FREE, no reservations and includes:

• Life! Beginnings with hands-on exhibits showing how living things grow, develop, and survive.
• Bodyworks Theater where guests meet Tess, the 50-foot human body simulator in a show full of animatronics, animation, and special effects.

Fire! Science & Safety: FREE, no reservations and includes:

• Hands-on interactives to investigate the science of fire and learn how to prevent or stop fire and burns.

Goose Bumps! The Science of Fear: FREE, no reservations and includes:

• An exploration of the universal emotion that can save lives through fun, interactive challenges (sudden loud noises, electric shock, heights) where guests can experience fear in a safe environment and discover the science behind our physical and emotional responses.

And finally, AT HOME: If you can’t join us in person this summer, there are FREE virtual field trips for K-5^th grade found on the website here;  and a guide to science activities that can be safely performed at home, here.

The following can be enjoyed for a fee. For additional experiences and further information visit the website at www.californiasciencecenter.org:

LEONARDO DA VINCI: Inventor. Artist. Dreamer. – a journey into one of history’s greatest minds to discover the engineering and artistry of Leonardo da Vinci’s extraordinary creations. Ticket purchase required.

IMAX

Three movies are currently available in the IMAX Theater: Blue Whales 3D, which takes viewers on a journey to learn about the largest animal ever to have lived; Cities of the Future 3D, a movie that allows guests to step into the future and discover the exciting innovations engineers are working on that will help us meet the challenges of a changing world; and Deep Sky, which brings the awe-inspiring images captured by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to IMAX^® — taking audiences on a journey to the beginning of time and space, to never-before-seen cosmic landscapes.

About the California Science Center 

The California Science Center is a dynamic destination where families, adults and children can explore the wonders of science through hands-on exhibits, live demonstrations, innovative programs and awe-inspiring large-format movies. The California Science Center and IMAX Theater are located in historic Exposition Park just west of the Harbor (110) Freeway at 700 Exposition Park Drive, Los Angeles. Open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Parking is $20 for cars. General admission to the Science Center is FREE.

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Media Contacts: 

Kristina Kurasz Cutting | Director of Communications | California Science Center 

[email protected] | 213-744-7446 

Sophie Jefferies| Communications Specialist | California Science Center

[email protected] | 213-744-7491