Hitting The Streets For The Caped Crusader

There is no bigger fan of The Dark Knight: The IMAX Experience than Phil Cosand. Phil has been a projectionist in our two IMAX theaters for many years, he has an enormous collection of comic books, he is an unabashed sci-fi film fanatic, and he loves all things Batman. To help spread the word that the biggest film of 2008 has opened again at our Boeing IMAX Theater for an encore presentation, Phil and a trusty sidekick took to the streets of Seattle. Check it out in the YouTube video below, then come on down and see this enormous cinematic saga on the biggest screen in town. Hey, when was the last time you saw a superhero catch a flying fish!?

Slough News: Exceptional Architecture Examined

We've published many stories about the →Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center in Bellevue, and for good reason. It's a great resource for our community that teaches thousands of students every year. Now, another story has been published about this wonderful place, this time by the Seattle P-I. It goes into detail how the architects managed to build this facility not just at the Slough, but how they made it part of the landscape. Very much →worth a read.

Spring Family Workshop Series
Join our Lake Washington Watershed →teen interns and Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center staff for an hour-long workshop at the Slough. These happen on the second Saturday every month starting February 14. To celebrate Valentine's Day, our first Family Workshop is called "Baby Love." Come learn why baby animals love to call the Slough home and the ways they survive in the wetland (with the help of their parents, of course!) The workshops run 11:45 a.m.-12:45 p.m. You can also stay after the Family Workshop for a Park Ranger Guided Tour and Wetland Walk that starts at 1 p.m. →Learn More

Lighting The Arches For One Special Day

Pacific Science Center is pleased to be part of a very special event this weekend (Jan. 31, 2009). A 14-year-old boy in the Seattle area has asked the Make-A-Wish Foundation to grant a wish. He doesn't want to go to Disneyland or meet a famous person, he wants to BE that famous person himself, for just one day. So, a number of local restaurants and other businesses have agreed to be part of Chuka's Celebrity For A Day wish. Chuka and his entourage will travel around in style, having various VIP experiences with a final stop at the Space Needle Saturday night. When he looks down at Pacific Science Center's famous arches he'll see them glowing blue, his favorite color. We hope he has a fabulous time. Thanks to the →Make-A-Wish Foundation for bringing this all together.

Science On Tap - Suspended Animation

Our next Science On Tap Queen Anne promises to be thought-provoking and fascinating. Join KCTS9 and Pacific Science Center as we host a talk by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center's Dana L. Miller, PhD. The topic: "Buying Time With Suspended Animation." We hope to see you at →T.S. McHugh's Tuesday, Feb. 3, 7:30 p.m.

Washington Imagination Award

Calling all public elementary schools in Washington state that encourage and incorporate imaginative thinking - apply now for the first annual Washington Imagination Award! Win $5000.00 and other prizes for your school! Deadline to apply is February 27, 2009. For information and application forms visit →www.creativitymatters.net

Teachers On The Leading Edge

Here's a message for all Science Educators. It comes from the organization Teachers On the Leading Edge (TOTLE). That group is offering a fully-paid-for, for-credit, workshop for middle-level earth science teachers (grades 5-9) July 26-31, 2009 at Pacific Lutheran University. Through a problem solving approach, participants will learn about the exciting and active geology of the Pacific Northwest and take home a variety of materials ready for immediate implementation into the classroom. For more information please check →http://orgs.up.edu/TOTLE/

Slough News: Teachers Teaching Teachers

Recently, three classes from Seattle's Van Asselt Elementary School attended our Naturalists program at the →Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center. On hand for these classes were members of our →Lake Washington Watershed Intern program. They were being trained by our teachers so these same interns could travel to Van Asselt in the following months, once a month during the school day to teach one hour classes about wildlife, forestry, aquatics and water quality, as well as wetlands and watersheds. The visit to The Slough was paid for by a special fundraising event at Pacific Science Center on →New Year's Eve 2007. We want to thank Sara Watson and her friends whose party ended up helping so many students.

From Ghana, With Love
Speaking of Van Asselt and our interns, a former Pacific Science Center teacher who used to work with the students at that school is now serving with the Peace Corps in Ghana and has been corresponding with the students back here. We have published one of →her letters to the interns and thought we'd share it so we can all learn from the experiences of this wonderful teacher so far from home.

Take The Journey Of A Lifetime

Have you seen Lucy and experienced the discovery of a lifetime at →Lucy's Legacy: The Hidden Treasures Of Ethiopia? Take your personal journey of discovery even further by joining Pacific Science Center on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Ethiopia on Exploring Ethiopia: Ancient Kingdoms and Hidden Treasures, March 16-29, 2009. Limited spaces are still available on this amazing tour. If you are interested in signing up, please contact Leah Hausman at (206)443-3642 or Leah_Hausman@pacsci.org by February 1. More information about this trip can be found online at →pacsci.org/travel. We hope you will consider joining us on this incredible trip!

The P-I Examines The Slough's Architecture

We've published many stories about the →Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center in Bellevue, and for good reason. It's a great resource for our community that teaches thousands of students every year. Now, another story has been published about this wonderful place, this time by the Seattle P-I. It goes into detail how the architects managed to build this facility not just at the Slough, but how they made it part of the landscape. Very much →worth a read.

Hold The Solar System In Your Hands

Our Planetarium Teachers have been busy lately. They've taken some of our solar system's most famous objects and put them into a deck of cards! These cards are great for astronomy fans of all ages. For learning about planets, asteroids, moons, our sun and more, they're wonderful. →Learn more about this great new addition to the Pacific Science Center Store. Pacific Science Center Solar System Cards are generously sponsored by Aerojet.

AstroInfo: Dark Energy

It sounds like science fiction, but it's quite real. At least we think it is. It is the subject of great debate and speculation and study. What is it? It's Dark Energy and it's the subject of Planetarium Specialist Alice Enevoldsen's latest installment of →AstroInfo!

Slough News: Taylor Creek Care

Come join the →Taylor Creek teen interns and →Friends of Deadhorse Canyon for their monthly stewardship at Taylor Creek in South Seattle this Saturday, January 17 from 8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. There are about 80 to 100 plants to put in the ground and plenty of ivy to remove. Come dressed for the weather, keeping in mind that it has been very wet and muddy lately. Refreshments, gloves, tools AND FUN!!! will be provided. We will work rain or shine. Call Jude or Darrell at (206)772-1452 for more information and directions. These stewardship opportunities are offered to the public on the 3rd Saturday of every month!

Pacific Science Center Trivia Night!

Calling all Pacific Science Center fans! We're inviting you to join us at a local bar in Madison Park to show off everything you know about the Science Center.

Tuesday, January 13 at 8:00 p.m. will be the first ever Pacific Science Center trivia night at →The Attic Alehouse and Eatery in Madison Park. Prizes include IMAX passes, exhibit passes, and a secret surprise! Bring your friends and get ready for a night of science, drinks and fun.

Event is 21 and older and FREE for all entering teams! Hope to see you there.

The Making of An IMAX Train Film

The 35th Annual Model Railroad Show is Jan. 17-19 and is now better than ever! Join us for a special behind-the-scenes look at the making of "Rocky Mountain Express," an upcoming IMAX film chronicling a steam train adventure through the Canadian Rockies. Presentation includes a slide show and fifteen minutes of IMAX footage never before seen by the public. Admission is free with paid entry to Pacific Science Center.

• Eames IMAX Theater
• Jan. 17-19 at 1:30 p.m. & 4:30 p.m.
• Runs 30 min.

Slough News: A Busy Winter!

You might think things slow down during the colder months at the →Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center. Not true! Our teachers are as busy as ever hosting →Wild B'earthday Parties, leading families out on exciting →snowshoe expeditions, and teaching young learners all about winter survival during →February break camps. And even though many critters hibernate during winter, others do not. That means you never know who might show up. Like →this recent visitor. So, we invite you stop by and see what happens at this fascinating park during the cold, dark months.

The Importance Of Membership

The purchase of a Pacific Science Center membership not only provides you with wonderful benefits, but also enables us to make a meaningful and significant impact in the lives of more than 1,000,000 people each year through our exhibits and outreach programs. Our members are extremely important to us and we appreciate your continued support of all of our programs. Help support the science center today by purchasing your family a membership →online or by calling the Membership Office at (206)443-2924. Thank you for your dedication!

Valentine's Day Sleepover

It is fast becoming a favorite annual event, a mid-February classic! Sign up now for science, fun, and adventure at our Valentine's Day Sleepover for kids in grades 2-8. It's first come, first served so don't wait! →Learn More

February Break Camps!

We hope you and your family had an enjoyable holiday break and that the snow and ice didn't cause you too many problems. Now that we're getting back to work and school, it's time to start planning the next break coming up in February. This year our camp teachers have put together some exciting new programs along with familiar favorites. These camps are at our main campus adjacent to Seattle Center as well as the Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center in Bellevue. So, make your plans now and register soon since space is limited. →Learn More

Come See Lucy For Yourself

When we speak with visitors as they emerge from →Lucy's Legacy: The Hidden Treasures Of Ethiopia they almost always say something like, "I had no idea the exhibit was this big." Like most of us, they didn't realize the rich cultural and religious history that has transpired in Ethiopia. It's all on display now, along with the world's most famous fossil, Lucy. She also came from that part of Africa, often called the cradle of humanity. We found a blog posting that sums it up nicely. Another person who came skeptical, but left astounded. →Take a look, then come see this priceless collection of fossils and artifacts for yourself.

Lucy Talks: Lucy Walks!

The next lecture in the Burke Museum's outstanding →Lucy Talks lecture series, in partnership with Pacific Science Center, is all about walking. Dr. Patricia Kramer of the University of Washington will discuss how anthropologists decipher clues from fossils to discover how and why our earliest hominid ancestors walked upright. Join us Jan 8, 7 p.m. at Pacific Science Center's Eames Theater. →Tickets

Science On Tap: What Have We Learned?

Our next Science On Tap Queen Anne is astronomical! In 2009 we celebrate both the 20th year of the Hubble Space Telescope and the 400th anniversary of Galileo's pioneering accomplishments in the field of astronomy. Hubble and its sibling space platforms have led to a phenomenal rebirth and invigoration of modern astronomy. In this talk, UW Astronomer Bruce Balick will focus on the Hubble story, including the exciting camera enhancements coming in the final servicing and repair mission this winter. Professor Balick will survey the highlights of the science that we've learned--and how we learned it--in the past ten years. Join us Tuesday, Jan. 6 7:30 p.m. at →T.S. McHugh's Irish Pub.

The 'Beavers' Are Back!

One of most popular IMAX films we've ever shown returns on Monday, Jan. 6. Beavers gives you an up close and personal look at these fascinating creatures, all in the spectacular IMAX format on the huge screen. And this particular film is highly recommended for young visitors. It runs less than a half hour, it's not scary, and there's enough action to keep young learners interested. A great way to introduce them to the world of →IMAX.

AstroInfo: Just What Is A Year?

It's that time again, time to get a new calendar. But exactly what is a year? Think you know? You might be surprised at all the debate about that very question through the centuries. Planetarium and Stage Science Teacher Jeremy Higgins takes a closer look in a special edition of →AstroInfo!