Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium

Location: 3280 South Miami Avenue, Miami

Hours: Daily 10am - 6pm.  Closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Weintraub Observatory Fri 8pm - 10pm, weather permitting.
Admission:  Varies

Overview

The Museum of Science and Planetarium, founded in 1949, is acredited by the American Association of Museums and is an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institute. The museum is a recipient of the National Award for Museum Services by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The US Department of Education selected the Museum as the first science museum in the country to become an Upward Math and Science Center, an educational program to prepare the community's undeserved youth for college.

Exhibits
The Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium hosts first-class exhibitions that educate and entertain people of all ages in topic ranging from environment, science and cultural heritage. The museum also develops exhibits and tours them to other museums around the country. At present, the museum is creating "Amazon Voyages: Vivacious Fishes and Other Riches" which is being funded in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation.

Collections
The Museum holds the distinct honor of housing South Florida's largest natural history collection comprising over 60,000 artifacts and specimens covering zoology, geology, paleonthology and anthropology.

The Planetarium
The 230-seat Planetarium opened its doors in 1966 and soon became the leading facility of its kind in the world. Home to Jack Horkheimer's Star Gazer, the world's first and only weekly television series on naked-eye astronomy, the Planetarium present informative, multimedia programming in English and Spanish showcasing the stars, the planets and other wonders of the night sky.

Wildlife Center
The Museum's Wildlife Center educates visitors about South Florida's unique ecosystem. Home to the Falcon Batchelor Bird of Prey Center, a facility dedicated to the ecological stability, rehabilitation and release of injured birds of prey. The Wildlife Center has cared for more than 1,000 birds in the past decade. Close to half of these animals were released back into the wild, the others joined an array of exotic and native reptiles that serve as ambassadors at the Museum.

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