A beloved exhibit to welcome new learning experiences.
The Rocket Room, one of Please Touch Museum’s most iconic exhibits, is temporarily closed to install new interactives which will provide immersive learning experiences for young children and their caregivers.
Designed, fabricated, and installed by the Museum’s in-house Exhibits team, the refreshed Rocket Room is the result of a collaboration with the Museum Learning team to build stronger programmatic connections with current STEM concepts for young learners and reintroduce dramatic play opportunities which are foundational in early childhood education.
“Rockets, space flight, and the vast universe beyond the Earth have captured the imaginations of children for generations,” said Chief Learning Officer Olivia Thomas.
“The Exhibits and Museum Learning teams were inspired by the children’s response to our annual Space Weekend programming and began thinking of ways to bring the marvels of space and space travel into our everyday Museum experience. The result is a reimagined Rocket Room exhibit that combines play-based learning experiences with STEM principles to inspire a sense of wonder and possibility for our young visitors.”
New Rocket Room Interactives
Below is a sneak peek of the prototypes and development for the new Rocket Room interactives — check back soon for the final images!
Space Craft
Children can “blast off” into space as pilots of Please Touch Museum’s new spacecraft. Wearing helmets and space jackets for their mission, children can take a turn in the pilot seat and communicate via an interactive headset with their friends operating Mission Control, as they countdown to “lift off” and navigate the star field in the universe that awaits.
Mission Control
Wearing lab coats and using a mounted microphone to communicate with pilots in PTM’s spacecraft, young engineers working in Mission Control are monitoring the onboard computers and entering the coordinates to ensure a smooth liftoff! Children will see maps of other mission control centers and observatories from across the globe, working together as an international team to ensure a safe spaceflight for all.
Rover Station
Exploring the surface of different planets is a challenge! Young engineers will construct their own “rovers” to navigate the downward terrain and “craters” on the surface of Mars to see which type of vehicle works best. Children can build prototypes using different wheels on their rover — smooth ones, treaded ones, large or small, our engineers can try them all!
Rocket Launcher
Don’t worry, you’ll still be able to launch rockets in the exhibit! One of the current rocket launchers is being redesigned to provide children with greater control as they “blast” their rockets through the rotating circles suspended from the ceiling of the Rocket Room. Children will be able to maneuver the launcher up and down, right and left, providing greater aim and agency as they determine the best angle to send their rockets into the air.
Ready to play your way into space? Make a reservation to visit Please Touch Museum’s refreshed Rocket Room.
Anticipated opening is November 20, 2023.