miSci - The Museum of Innovation and Science is a museum and planetarium located in Schenectady, New York. Its mission is "to celebrate, explore and inspire science and technology, past, present, and future". miSci's exhibits and educational programming focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics.The museum's President is Gina C. Gould, Ph.D., the CFO is Amy Burns, the Vice President of Collections + Exhibitions is Chris Hunter, the Vice President of Education is Tyler Kellogg, the Director of Marketing + Communications is Bradley LaMere, and the Director of Membership and Special Events is Dan Beck. Inside of the museum is the Suits-Bueche Planetarium. It contains a GOTO Chronos Star Machine, one of only 16 in the United States, which is capable of displaying 8,500 stars and 24 constellation outlines. The projector can show the sky from any location on Earth 100,000 years in the past or in the future. Also located at miSci is a Challenger Learning Center. Opened in 2014, the CLC at miSci is an interactive learning environment that gives students and visitors the opportunity to be part of an exciting simulated space mission. The archives contain over 1.5 million photographs, making them the seventh largest collection of photographs in the US. The archives also include 110 radios, 60 televisions, 15,000 patents, 5000 books, and 1000 films. Many of the items relate to the history of Schenectady and General Electric. The archives are open to the public with an appointment during Monday to Friday from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
Permanent exhibits
In addition to its temporary exhibitions, the museum houses the following permanent exhibits:
Wind and Solar: The Renewable Energy Revolution - an exhibit that broadens visitors’ understanding of renewable energy technology and climate change factors, while inspiring advocacy for renewable solutions to society’s ever-increasing energy demands.
KEVA: Design, Build, Create - design a skyscrapers, suspension bridges, castles, etc, using principles of balance, cantilevers, geometric shapes, optimum proportion, stability and more, using KEVA planks – thousands of identical, precision-cut smooth wooden blocks – all ¼ inch thick, ¾ inch long and 4 ½ inches wide.
Play Space - discover weight, measurement, sorting, and fun as you play in a kid-sized market! Explore the water table, where you can move gates from one position to another position affects the flow of a waterway in this instant action-reaction experience.
Smart Chemistry: Experience the wonders of chemistry at the Bubble Table. Create your own molecules. Enter the bubble booth, and experience what it’s like to be inside a bubble!
Fueling the Future: An exhibit on different methods of powering automobiles, including biodiesel, electricity, ethanol, gasoline, and hydrogen. It includes a 1978 electric car prototype made by General Electric, a Schenectady company.
mISci is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10am to 5pm and on Sunday from 12-5PM. Admission is $12.00 for adults, $10 for senior citizens, and $8.00 for children aged 3–12. Children under three are free. Planetarium shows cost $6 in addition to the admission fee.
