Top things to do at the new Frost Science Museum
After much anticipation, Miami’s $305 million science museum is here. While locals may have some nostalgia for the old Coconut Grove spot, let’s be real. This new place is amazing. The round planetarium literally looks like an escape pod to space. The oculus at the bottom of the 500,000-gallon aquarium looks like a portal into another dimension. They have a bird hospital on the roof, people.
Here are some of the coolest attractions guests will find at the new Frost Science Museum.
1. The Aquarium, obviously
Matthew Rosales 7 of Miami presses his face against the glass to check out the sea life during the long-awaited opening of the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science on Sunday, May 7, 2017. PATRICK FARRELL pfarrell@miamiherald.com A shark swims by as Lilian Castillo gets a picture during the long-awaited opening of the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science on Sunday, May 7, 2017. PATRICK FARRELL pfarrell@miamiherald.com The view from over the large aquarium during the long-awaited opening of the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science on Sunday, May 7, 2017. PATRICK FARRELL pfarrell@miamiherald.com Visitors get to touch the sea life during the long-awaited opening of the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science on Sunday, May 7, 2017. PATRICK FARRELL pfarrell@miamiherald.com
The biggest draw to this new museum is going to be the 500,000 gallon, three-story aquarium that gives visitors a view from above and below with a 31-foot-wide oculus that allows visitors to peer up the ocean-like tank.
Three levels of tanks start at the top Vista level with outdoor exhibits mimicking South Florida ecosystems, from the “Gulf Stream” to offshore coral and a beach, a mangrove edge and an upland hardwood hammock.
2. Feathers to Stars
Gabriel Castagna 11 and his mother take in the sights of the Feathers tothe Stars exhibit during the long-awaited opening of the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science on Sunday, May 7, 2017. PATRICK FARRELL pfarrell@miamiherald.com A young girl uses an interactive display in the Feathers to the Stars exhibit during the long-awaited opening of the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science on Sunday, May 7, 2017. PATRICK FARRELL pfarrell@miamiherald.com Amelie Castagna 7 plays an interactive game in the Feathers to the Stars exhibit during the long-awaited opening of the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science on Sunday, May 7, 2017. PATRICK FARRELL pfarrell@miamiherald.com The dramatic entry to the Feathers to the Stars exhibit during the long-awaited opening of the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science on Sunday, May 7, 2017. PATRICK FARRELL pfarrell@miamiherald.com
Feathers to the Stars goes from the very first winged creatures, on to the ways humans used imagination and engineering to get airborne then looks at how outer space is the next frontier.
3. The Planetarium
Frost’s new Planetarium by the numbers:
- There are 250 seats
- There are six 3D-capable projectors
- The planetarium uses a 16-million-color 8K visual system
- The dome is tilted forward at 23.5 degrees, allowing a 67-foot span to fill your field of vision, creating a nearly 360-degree view of the screen
All of this technical mumbo jumbo means that your planetarium experience just got a major upgrade. All the shows, from trips to space to deep dives into the earth’s oceans, will feel that much more real.
4. LASERsHOW
Don’t confuse this exhibition with the Planetarium’s Laser Shows (the ones your stoner friends all love so much). LASERsHOW: Light, Color and Geometry teaches about the wonders of lasers and light itself – besides their obvious uses of entertaining cats. The exhibit, located on the first floor of the museum, features four stations boasting a close exploration into the physics of light and lasers at a geometry-inspired center stage.
5. River of Grass
The exhibit features an indoor hands-on area with a virtual Everglades where you can catch all the native critters hanging in their habitat without getting eaten alive by mosquitoes. The outdoor area gives visitors a chance to interact with the physics of water which illustrates the hydrology that keeps the 300-mile Everglades flowing and flourishing.
IF YOU GO
What: Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science, 1101 Biscayne Blvd., Miami, FL 33132
Hours: 11 a.m to 6 p.m.
Tickets: $28 for aduly, $20 children 3-11
Info: 305-434-9600 or FrostScience.org
6. The Rooftop
The birds of prey exhibit located on the roof is comprised mostly of injured rescues undergoing rehab and is part of an augmented animal display at the stand-alone aquarium building. Located in a shady canopy on the roof, with amazing views of the city, shore and marsh birds flock together in with other wild critters. But while you are up there, look at those views!
IF YOU GO
What: Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science, 1101 Biscayne Blvd., Miami, FL 33132
Hours: 11 a.m to 6 p.m.
Tickets: $28 for aduly, $20 children 3-11
Info: 305-434-9600 or FrostScience.org
This story was originally published May 7, 2017 at 10:05 PM.