Pacific Science Center

The Pacific Science Center in Seattle is a nonprofit organization dedicated to science education, located on the grounds of the Seattle Center near downtown. The site's history dates back to 1962, when the building was constructed as the United States Science Pavilion for the Century 21 Exposition world's fair. After the fair ended, the pavilion was converted into a permanent museum, which today draws more than a million visitors a year. In addition to its main location in Seattle, the institution also runs a satellite center in Bellevue that specializes in environmental education and wetland ecology. The center also organizes a wide range of programs for children, teens, and adults, including summer camps and special events for grown-ups, as well as an outreach program that uses buses to bring interactive science activities to schools throughout the Pacific Northwest.

The complex was designed by the renowned architect Minoru Yamasaki, whose design stands out for its distinctive arch shapes made of precast concrete elements. This design brought the building international recognition and shaped the look of the world's fair at the time. Inside the grounds, which today consist of eight buildings, you'll find a wide range of interactive exhibits. These include a tropical butterfly garden, a planetarium, and a permanent dinosaur exhibit that was installed in the 1990s. A particular highlight is the two IMAX theaters, a rarity worldwide, as well as a large laser dome theater that was originally designed to offer a sweeping view into outer space.

Besides the permanent installations, the museum regularly presents rotating special exhibitions, which often draw large crowds. One example is the successful exhibition on the history of Chinese exploration in the 1980s. Art plays a role here too: an installation called Sonic Bloom, made up of five tall, flower-shaped sculptures, generates electricity through solar panels and responds to the presence of visitors with light and sound. Some exhibits, such as the lens and mirror machine or a floating model of the moon, date back to the original world's fair and recall the center's historic roots.