Arizona Science Center

Cosmic Corner: Out of This World Off-Roading

admin — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:32:51 +0000

If you think driving around here on Earth is a pain, you haven’t tried off-roading on a different planet! Rovers have been driving on the surface of other worlds since the early 1970s, starting with the Soviet Lunokhod 1 lunar rover. To date, the Moon and Mars have been the lucky candidates to be explored by awesome off-roading rovers.
Read more…

Predicting Tornados with New Technology

admin — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:33:22 +0000

One of the most important tools to meteorologists and storm chasers is an advanced weather radar program called GR2Analyst. GR2Analyst is a powerful computer program that allows meteorologists and storm chasers to understand the structure within severe thunderstorms and see potential tornado genesis (rotation) within supercell storms. This advanced program also features current radar data of a storm and displays the storm in state-of-the-art volumetric 3D. This allows meteorologists to see the internal storm structure, hail cores (where hail is forming inside the storm) and, most importantly, tornados. The program is currently used in the Forces of Nature gallery here at Arizona Science Center to show guests the structure of storms across the US where severe weather and/or tornado weather is occurring. This program allows the invisible interior of the storm to be seen by using many visual radar tools, so crucial decisions can be made if a storm is getting worse or tornado genesis is occurring. For storm chasers, this program’s portability is essential because it can show many different aspects of a storm while on the road, and it allows them to notify National Weather Service of severe weather immediately.

Guests can see how this program is used by professional storm chasers in the IMAX film “Tornado Alley 3D,” which is now showing at Arizona Science Center! Click here for times.

Cosmic Corner: Hubble’s Eye on the Cosmos

admin — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 17:19:11 +0000

The Hubble Space Telescope has brought the universe into view with far greater clarity than the human eye ever could. Since its launch in 1990 aboard the space shuttle Discovery, Hubble has confirmed the existence of black holes, refined our knowledge of the age and size of the universe, and stared back to nearly the dawn of time.

National Yo-Yo Day at Arizona Science Center

admin — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 00:08:30 +0000

Last Thursday, June 6, Arizona Science Center celebrated National Yo-Yo Day with an afternoon of hands on yo-yo activities and demonstrations from the group All Yo-Yo.

Below are some yo-yo facts and pictures from our fun event!

The yo-yo is the second oldest toy that we know about dating back to 450 B.C.
Using a metal yo-yo versus a plastic yo-yo can increase the spinning time of a sleeping yo-yo up to 10 minutes
The yo-yo was taken into space for the first time onboard a U.S. space shuttle in 1985
13-year-old Harvey Lowe was the winner of the first ever World Yo-Yo Competition in London in 1932
The yo-yo is thought to have been invented in either China or Greece based on archeological evidence

Freeze! The Sweet Science of Ice Cream

admin — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 22:59:42 +0000

19 families joined Arizona Science Center’s Preschool Saturday Science class on May 18 as we got ready for the summer with a sweet treat! Preschoolers and their families read along with “Should I Share my Ice Cream?” By Mo Willems, learned the math behind mixing and measuring ingredients, and chowed down on their own invented flavor of ice cream. This unique Arizona Science Center experience incorporated literacy, language, science, and math skills which are important foundations for success in school and in life. For more information on upcoming Preschool Saturday Science classes, click here.

Is our Solar System weird?

admin — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:40:18 +0000

OUR SOLAR SYSTEM MIGHT BE UNIQUE IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE!

Scientists now believe that there are as many planets (if not more) in our Milky Way Galaxy as stars– hundreds of billions! So far, we have confirmed the existence of nearly
900 other worlds orbiting distant stars and there are thousands more still under investigation. As we search, we are learning that the solar system we call home may be an odd duck when compared to the massive diversity of these other planetary systems.

Disappearing Honey Bees

admin — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:00:53 +0000

By Lauren Preble
Guest experience gallery interpreter

Spring is upon us, and I am sure you have witnessed quite a few more honey bees (Apis mellifera; native to Europe) fluttering around in the breezy Phoenix afternoons. But have you ever taken the time to recognize and appreciate the true value of the beloved honey bee? Despite the nasty sting of the honey bee with which you may have personal experience, these bees are not aggressive in nature. In fact, these bees help us much more than hurt us!

How, you ask? Honey bees act as pollinators, meaning that the worker bees of the colony actively seek out both nectar and pollen in flowers as a source of nutrition for the rest of the hive. And, have you ever noticed that bees have tiny hairs on their bodies? Pollen from one flower will stick to these hairs, allowing pollen from one flower to be transported to another flower as the bee continues its search for both nectar and pollen. The transfer of pollen from one flower to another will result in fertilization, and eventually, the production of a fruit! This process is known as cross-pollination.

All Hands on STEM Inspires Students at Arizona Science Center

admin — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:38:53 +0000

On the afternoon of May 7th, the lobby of Arizona Science Center was alive with the excited buzz of nearly 200 elementary school students and their teachers. Look to one side of the lobby and you would see a group of 5th graders with their brows furrowed in intense concentration as they attempted to build a bridge out of dominoes.

A glance over to another area would reveal a group of 3rd graders whose expressions alternated between absolute disgust and wide-eyed wonder as they watched a cow eyeball dissection. A glimpse over to another part of the lobby would show a precocious group of 2nd graders testing car design aerodynamics with toy cars and a fan.

Everywhere you looked there were groups of young students – and yes, often chaperones and teachers as well – engaging in some kind of hand-on, STEM-centered activity. This event, aptly titled “All Hands on STEM”, was hosted at Arizona Science Center as a part of NBC News’ Education Nation tour. It was an incredibly rousing success for all involved. Through this event, Arizona Science Center was able to live out its mission to inspire, entertain, and educate people of all ages about science!

Pack your bags, we’re going to space!

admin — Mon, 13 May 2013 20:47:53 +0000

DON’T FORGET YOUR TOOTHBRUSH…

Would you go to space? In the not-so-distant future, taking a weekend jaunt to the Mariner Valley on Mars may be as realistic as taking a flight to Europe! “Space tourism” is now a booming industry that companies, like Virgin Galactic, are pushing ahead. While these companies are still in the Research and Development phase of mass space travel, they are already reserving seats for maiden voyages at a whopping $200,000 a piece!

Rovin’ Around on Mars!

admin — Mon, 06 May 2013 22:43:16 +0000

Do you think the Mars Rovers get a spring break too? They sure do! Mars passed behind the Sun last week (from Earth’s perspective), and NASA will not be able to communicate with any of the rovers, like Curiosity and Opportunity, or the satellites, like the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, so it’s like they get a few weeks off work!

Not to worry though; Curiosity didn’t get away without a little homework! Scientists loaded the rover with a few simple tasks to perform while out of contact, like collecting weather and temperature data.

To read more, click here.