The California Science Center will offer media a first look Wednesday at its new Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center, where space shuttle Endeavour will be displayed vertically in a launch-ready configuration.
The 200,000-square-foot expansion adds 100,000 square feet of exhibit space, nearly doubling the Science Center’s current exhibit area. It features more than 100 aerospace artifacts and 100 hands-on exhibits focused on science, technology and engineering, according to the Science Center.
The new center spans four floors and includes three multilevel galleries: the Samuel Oschin Shuttle Gallery, the Korean Air Aviation Gallery and the Kent Kresa Space Gallery. Exhibits will let visitors design aircraft, explore engineering concepts and learn about aviation and space exploration, according to the Science Center.
The Science Center and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced Tuesday that the Kent Kresa Space Gallery will feature JPL spacecraft, artifacts and interactive exhibits about robotic missions to Earth, the moon and other worlds.
Artifacts and models representing six decades of JPL exploration include a restored Ranger lunar probe, models of the Mariner IV spacecraft and Viking lander, and replicas of the Sojourner, Mars Exploration and Perseverance rovers and the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, the Science Center said.
Visitors will be able to program a miniature Mars rover, build a robotic spacecraft, explore exoplanets and try gravity assists, a technique spacecraft use to change course through the solar system. Touchscreens will feature interviews with JPL experts.
The organizations have worked together for four decades, according to the Science Center. JPL is managed by Caltech in Pasadena.
“For 90 years, Caltech and JPL have turned that imagination into voyages of discovery, revealing new worlds we once knew only as distant points of light, and transforming our understanding of the universe and our place within it,” Caltech President Ray Jayawardhana said. “We are delighted to partner with the California Science Center to invite visitors of all ages into that cosmic quest.”
Endeavour will be displayed with authentic solid rocket boosters and ET-94, the last remaining flight-qualified external fuel tank. The Science Center said the display will be the only place in the world where visitors can see a complete space shuttle system with a flown orbiter and authentic flight hardware.
Endeavour completed 25 missions, including the first service mission to the Hubble Space Telescope and the first mission to add a U.S. component to the International Space Station. It also delivered the Canadarm2 robotic arm to the station and helped install elements of Japan’s Kibo module.
The shuttle first launched in May 1992 and flew its final mission in May 2011. It traveled more than 122 million miles and spent 299 days in space, according to the Science Center.
Endeavour arrived in Los Angeles in 2012 after being transported through city streets from Los Angeles International Airport to the Science Center. It had been displayed horizontally but went off display as the new center was built.
The expansion is the third and final phase of a three-decade master plan for the Science Center. The new center opens to the public at 10 a.m. Nov. 13.
Reservations opened to the public Oct. 21. General admission to the Science Center is free, but advance reservations for the new facility, including access to Endeavour, are strongly encouraged. A $4 reservation service fee applies per person and is waived for Science Center members. Entry may be limited for visitors without reservations, officials said.
The project is supported by the California Science Center Foundation’s EndeavourLA fundraising campaign, which has raised more than $415 million toward a $450 million goal.