If you missed the Endeavour when it flew over or drove across town, the Science Center's exhibit captures the slow-motion journey that the behemoth made down LA's city streets in a wide-screen documentary film. There are fun hands-on demonstrations like the Lever Demonstration. The ride lasts about seven minutes and blasts out of the Earth's atmosphere and back with all the expected virtual thrills. The flight simulator costs $5 extra, but kids will beg for a chance to try it.
Wondering how much rubber gets worn off trying to land a shuttle? Plenty. Yes, there's a real opportunity to kick the enormous tires that have been to space and back - a real treat for toddlers who are used to being told to stop kicking walls, toys, and furniture around the house. Kids will be entranced by the wall of screens on the Rocketdyne Operations Support Center (ROSC), which may remind them of something out of a movie or a video game. Other features include the actual command station used to communicate with Endeavour when in flight. For toddlers to school-age kids, this and the space potty will make the entire trip memorable. Wrinkle your nose if you like, but kids find this hysterical.Īfter the space potty, move on to the zero-gravity food fight at a display that shows astronauts playing with their food in ways never thought possible. Kids get to check out an actual space potty (the one astronauts practiced on before Endeavour missions) at an interactive display that explains just what's so difficult about peeing without gravity. One highlight for kids (especially preschoolers) is the display on going to the potty in space. A shuttle ticket gives you access to an exhibit about space travel, illustrating the experiences of astronauts on board the Endeavour. The Science Center has a whole tour mapped out for guests, culminating at the Oschin Pavilion. The Endeavour experience is more than just a walk around the perimeter of the space shuttle - and while much of the displays will be enlightening for grown-ups, even preschoolers will be engaged (see space potty below). Photo courtesy of the California Science Center