The Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science (formerly known as the Miami Science Museum) is a museum located in Miami, Florida United States. The 3280 S. Miami Ave. location is closed and the museum will re-open at a new location early in 2017. The museum is moving to Park West at Bicentennial Park in Downtown Miami, where it will join the new Pérez Art Museum Miami.
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History
The museum first started as "The Junior Museum of Miami" and was a private non-profit organization established in 1949. It was located inside a house on the corner of Biscayne Boulevard and 26th Street. The museum grew so rapidly that in 1952 it relocated to the Miami Women's Club building on North Bayshore Drive. When it arrived at the new location it was renamed "Museum of Science and Natural History".
In 1953, the Guild of the Museum of Science was formed, adding volunteers to assist the staff, run the Museum Store, and conduct tours and outreach programs.
The museum began to outgrow its new home again and a special committee, headed by Claire Weintraub, recommended that Miami should establish a major independent science museum which could service citizens of all ages. By 1960, the first building of the community's new science museum opened its doors. The facility was located on 3 acres (12,000 m2) of the historic Vizcaya complex, and was built and furnished rent-free by the county.
In 1966, the Space Transit Planetarium was built and soon became the leading facility of its kind in the world. In 1989, the museum's lease agreement with the county for the Vizcaya site was extended for 99 years. The yearly operating budget has grown to 2.5 million dollars, and the property totals 48,000 square feet (4,500 m2).
In 2001, the Miami-Dade Public Library System was one of six US museum/library systems to win the National Medal for Museum and Library Service. In March 2011, Miami native Phillip Frost donated $35 million to the construction of the new science museum in Downtown Miami, hence the name. Frost's donation to the museum is one of the largest donations to Miami's cultural institutions. The new museum broke ground in downtown Miami in early 2012, and is currently scheduled to open on May 8 2017.
Natural History Museum Miami Video
Exhibits
The museum has showcased the following exhibits:
- The Sea Lab
- Hurricanes
- Water, Wind, and Weather: Miami in a Changing Climate
- Room for Debate
- Heart Smart
- Moving Things
- Energy Tracker
- Nano
- The Reclamation Project/Native Flags
- The Wildlife Center
- Planetarium
Planetarium
The planetarium was opened on November 4, 1966. It was home to Jack Horkheimer's Star Gazer, the world's first and only weekly television series on naked-eye astronomy. The projection dome room is 65' in diameter and has seating for more than 230. It utilizes a Spitz STP (Space Transit Planetarium) star projector.
Closing of Coconut Grove and relocation
The Coconut Grove location of the Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science closed on August 30, 2015. While closed, the museum will continue to be active in and around South Florida via its "Out & About with Frost Science" outreach program, bringing educational science experiences to the community and hosting science-themed events.
The new Frost Science will be structured around a lushly-landscaped indoor and outdoor Living Core Aquarium of terrestrial and aquatic environments, featuring a Gulf Stream Aquarium experience totaling more than 500,000 US gallons (1,900,000 l; 420,000 imp gal) of salt water. The facility will also feature the full-dome Frost Planetarium, the Knight Learning Center, Innovation Center and Cafe, and an Exploration Center featuring permanent interactive exhibits.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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