Science Museum Oklahoma

Last updated
Science Museum Oklahoma
Logo of Science Museum Oklahoma.png
Science Museum Oklahoma
Former name
The Omniplex Science Museum
LocationOklahoma City, Oklahoma
Coordinates 35°31′25″N97°28′30″W / 35.5236°N 97.4751°W / 35.5236; -97.4751
Type Science museum
AccreditationAAM Accredited Museum
Visitors600,000+ (2023) [1]
Website http://www.sciencemuseumok.org/

Science Museum Oklahoma is a science museum located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The museum features several notable attractions, including the new Love's Planetarium, the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame, and various specialized galleries. With a facility spanning over 390,000 square feet, it ranks among the largest science museums in the nation. Originally established as the Kirkpatrick Planetarium in 1958, the museum underwent significant expansions in 1980, 1985, 2000, and 2007.

Contents

History

The Science Museum Oklahoma, originally named the Kirkpatrick Planetarium, was established in 1958. It relocated to a permanent facility at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds in 1962. [2] Later that year, the Oklahoma Science and Arts Foundation facility was completed on the fairgrounds. [2] In 1978, the foundation underwent a name change to Omniplex Science Museum. Subsequently, it relocated with the Kirkpatrick Planetarium to the newly constructed Kirkpatrick Center museum campus. [2] Subsequent expansions to the museum complex include the addition of the Oklahoma Air and Space Museum in 1980, the establishment of the Kirkpatrick Gardens and Greenhouse in 1985, and the introduction of the OmniDome Theatre in 2000, which notably became Oklahoma's inaugural large-format, dome-screen theater. [2] In 2007, Omniplex underwent a name change to Science Museum Oklahoma. Following the rebranding, the museum underwent significant remodeling efforts, introducing numerous new exhibits and galleries. These additions included a space exhibit designed to engage younger visitors and various art galleries.

Notable exhibits

Kirkpatrick Planetarium SMO Planetarium.jpg
Kirkpatrick Planetarium

International Gymnastics Hall of Fame

The International Gymnastics Hall of Fame, housed within Science Museum Oklahoma, showcases collections of medals, apparatus, awards, sculptures, and a library. The organization's mission is to recognize individuals who have contributed to the advancement of gymnastics. Notable inductees include Nadia Comăneci, Olga Korbut, Bart Conner, Valeri Liukin, Mary Lou Retton, Larisa Latynina, Nikolai Andrianov, and Věra Čáslavská.

See also

Related Research Articles

The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry is a science and technology museum in Portland, Oregon, United States. It contains three auditoriums, including a large-screen theatre, planetarium, and exhibition halls with a variety of hands-on permanent exhibits focused on natural sciences, industry, and technology. Transient exhibits span a wider range of disciplines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cosmosphere</span> Space museum in Hutchinson, Kansas, US

Cosmosphere is an international science education center and space museum in Hutchinson, Kansas, United States. It was previously known as the Kansas Cosmosphere. The museum houses over 13,000 spaceflight artifacts—the largest combined collection of US and Russian spaceflight artifacts in the world, and is home to various space educational programs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museum of Science (Boston)</span> Science museum, Indoor zoo in Boston, Massachusetts

The Museum of Science (MoS) is a nature and science museum and indoor zoological establishment located in Science Park, a plot of land in Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, spanning the Charles River. Along with over 700 interactive exhibits, the museum features a number of live and interactive presentations throughout the building each day, along with scheduled film showings at the Charles Hayden Planetarium and the Mugar Omni Theater. The Museum is a member of the Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC) and the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). Additionally, the Museum of Science is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), being home to over 100 animals, many of which the museum gained after they were surrendered, confiscated, rescued or rehabilitated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carnegie Science Center</span> Science museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Carnegie Science Center, soon to be The Daniel G. and Carole L. Kamin Science Center, is one of the four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is located in the Chateau neighborhood. It is located across the street from Acrisure Stadium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Louis Science Center</span> Planetarium

The Saint Louis Science Center, founded as a planetarium in 1963, is a collection of buildings including a science museum and planetarium in St. Louis, Missouri, on the southeastern corner of Forest Park. With over 750 exhibits in a complex of over 300,000 square feet (28,000 m2), it is among the largest of its type in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manitoba Museum</span> Provincial human and natural history museum in Manitoba, Canada

The Manitoba Museum, previously the Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature, is a human and natural history museum in Winnipeg, Manitoba, as well as the province's largest, not-for-profit centre for heritage and science education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">COSI</span> Science museum in Columbus, Ohio

COSI, officially the Center of Science and Industry, is a science museum and research center in Columbus, Ohio. COSI was opened to the public on 29 March 1964 and remained there for 35 years. In 1999, COSI was moved to a 320,000-square-foot (30,000 m2) facility, designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki along a bend in the Scioto River in the Franklinton neighborhood. COSI features more than 300 interactive exhibits throughout themed exhibition areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fleet Science Center</span> Science museum and planetarium in San Diego, United States

The Fleet Science Center is a science museum and planetarium in Balboa Park in San Diego, California. Established in 1973, it was the first science museum to combine interactive science exhibits with a planetarium and an IMAX Dome (OMNIMAX) theater, setting the standard that most major science museums follow today. It is located at the east end of the El Prado Drive walkway, next to the Bea Evenson Fountain and plaza in central Balboa Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telus World of Science Edmonton</span> Science centre in Alberta, Canada

Telus World of Science Edmonton (TWOSE) is a broad-based science centre in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, operated by the (non-profit) Edmonton Space & Science Foundation. The centre is located on the southwest corner of Coronation Park in the neighborhood of Woodcroft. The science centre houses 144,430 sq. ft. of public space and is the largest science centre in Western Canada. It is currently a member of both the Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC) and the Canadian Association of Science Centres (CASC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Space Camp (United States)</span> Educational camp in Huntsville, Alabama

Space Camp is an educational camp in Huntsville, Alabama, on the grounds of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center (USSRC) museum near NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. It provides educational programs for children and adults on topics such as space exploration, aviation, and robotics. It is run by the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McLaughlin Planetarium</span> Planetarium museum in Ontario, Canada.

The McLaughlin Planetarium is a former working planetarium whose building occupies a space immediately to the south of the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, at 100 Queen's Park. Founded by a grant from philanthropist Colonel R. Samuel McLaughlin, the facility was opened to the public on October 26, 1968. It had, for its time, a state-of-the-art electro-mechanical Zeiss planetarium projector that was used to project regular themed shows about the stars, planets, and cosmology for visitors. By the 1980s the planetarium's sound-system and domed ceiling were used to display dazzling music-themed laser-light shows. The lower levels of the planetarium contained a gallery called the "Astrocentre" that featured space-related exhibits, related artifacts on the history of astronomy and was also home of the world's first commercial Stellarium

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houston Museum of Natural Science</span> Natural history museum in Houston, Texas

The Houston Museum of Natural Science is a natural history museum located on the northern border of Hermann Park in Houston, Texas, United States. The museum was established in 1909 by the Houston Museum and Scientific Society, an organization whose goals were to provide a free institution for the people of Houston focusing on education and science. The museum complex consists of a central facility with four floors of natural science halls and exhibits, the Burke Baker Planetarium, the Cockrell Butterfly Center, and the Wortham Giant Screen Theatre. In 2022, the museum received 1,520,000 visitors, making it seventh on the List of most-visited museums in the United States, and was the third most-visited U.S. science museum. Much of the museum's popularity is attributed to its large number of special or guest exhibits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chabot Space and Science Center</span> Science center in California

Chabot Space and Science Center, located in Oakland, California, is a center for learning in Earth and space science, which features interactive exhibits, planetariums, a large screen theater, hands-on activities, and three powerful telescopes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science</span> Science museum in Miami, Florida, US

The Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science, formerly known as the Miami Science Museum or Miami Science Museum and Space Transit Planetarium, is a science museum, planetarium, and aquarium located in Miami, Florida, United States. The museum originally opened its Coconut Grove location across from Vizcaya Museum and Gardens in 1960. It relocated to Maurice A. Ferré Park in the downtown area adjacent to the Perez Art Museum Miami in 2017 after the closing of the Coconut Grove location in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museum of Arts and Sciences (Macon, Georgia)</span>

The Museum of Arts and Sciences in Macon is a community museum in the U.S. state of Georgia. The facility includes four galleries with frequently changing exhibitions, the Discovery House with hands-on activities, live animal habitats, the Mark Smith Planetarium, nature trail, garden, store, auditorium, and classrooms. New exhibitions on fine arts, science topics, and the humanities are presented for periods of four to six months. The museum is open to the public daily and offers programs to schools and groups. The museum is a member of the American Alliance of Museums as of July 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tulsa Air and Space Museum & Planetarium</span> Aviation museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma

The Tulsa Air and Space Museum (TASM) is an aerospace museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States. It is located in the northwest corner of the Tulsa International Airport property. It has 19,000 square feet (1,800 m2) of historical exhibits, hands-on activities, and vintage aircraft. A full-dome planetarium was added in 2006. The museum also has educational facilities for school visits, summer camps, and Scout groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tourism in Memphis, Tennessee</span>

Tourism in Memphis includes the points of interest in Memphis, Tennessee such as museums, fine art galleries, and parks, as well as Graceland the Beale Street entertainment district, and sporting events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birla Planetarium, Chennai</span> Planetarium museum in Chennai, India.

B. M. Birla Planetarium is a large planetarium in Chennai, India. The fifth B. M. Birla planetarium in the country, it is located at Kotturpuram in the Periyar Science and Technology Centre campus which houses eight galleries, namely, Physical Science, Electronics and Communication, Energy, Life Science, Innovation, Transport, International Dolls and Children and Materials Science, with over 500 exhibits. Built in 1988 in the memory of the great industrialist and visionary of India B. M. Birla, it is considered the most modern planetarium in India, providing a virtual tour of the night sky and holding cosmic shows on a specially perforated hemispherical aluminium inner dome. Other Birla planetariums in India include the M. P. Birla Planetarium in Kolkata, the Birla Planetarium in Hyderabad, and the planetariums in Tiruchirapalli and Coimbatore.

Science Centre, Surat is a multi-facility complex in Surat, Gujarat, India built by the Surat Municipal Corporation in 2009, the first of its type in western India. The complex houses a Science Centre, museum, an art gallery, an auditorium, an Amphitheatre and a planetarium. It has been designed by Ahmedabad based architectural firm, HCP Design, Planning and Management Pvt. Ltd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parque de las Ciencias (Granada)</span> Science museum in Andalusia, Spain

Parque de las Ciencias is a science center and museum located in the city of Granada, Spain. It is a member of the European Network of Science Centers and Museums (ECSITE). The facility encompasses 70,000 square meters and offers a variety of experiences. These include permanent and temporary exhibits, a planetarium, educational spaces, and amenities like a cafe, restaurant, bookstore, library, and cinemas. Additionally, the Parque de las Ciencias has unique features such as a plastination lab and restoration and production workshops.

References

  1. "Vote Science Museum Oklahoma Best Science Museum". 13 February 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Omniplex History at a Glance". About Omniplex. Science Museum Oklahoma. Archived from the original on 2008-03-16. Retrieved 2008-01-10.