Students’ first stop in the exhibit is our state-of-the-art integrated video surround experience, featuring adaptive lighting, powerful audio, and stunning imagery from around the world. The air-conditioned theater comfortably accommodates seating for up to thirty students. Schools can choose from two short film presentations: “Journey to Earth,” a ten-minute role-playing experience where students assume the roles of science students from another galaxy sent to Earth to learn about its oceans and waterways and help solve issues affecting their health. In our second presentation, “Finding the Balance,” students fly with scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) into the eye of a hurricane, embarking further into the study of global atmospheric science to learn about factors affecting our climate and major ecosystems.  

Leaky motor oil. Flushed pharmaceuticals. Over fertilizing. Discarded cigarettes. This highly interactive exhibit simulates impacts from dumping pollution into our water systems. Agents place colored plastic balls representing pollution on the “watershed” model. Agents press a button to create rain over the urban landscape, sending the pollution down through the watershed, into our communities, and out into the ocean.

This actual running river is a great way for students to discover the many needs of our communities for water – and to get their hands wet along the way. Students are asked to divert water up and down the river to ensure it meets the needs of agriculture, industry, businesses, homes and tourism – and still have enough supply to reach its final destination. Just like government and business leaders must do today! This exhibit encourages students to work together to find which combinations work best.

A fascinating cultural and social look at water use. In this interactive, students discover how human settlement, farming and industry affect a lake region over a period of four centuries, starting with early colonials to modern industry. With all that use, is the lake sustainable? There are 200 frames representing this history starting at the 1600s. The task is for agents to spin the wheel and observe the changes caused by both humans and nature over time.