The California Science Center—a hands-on science center in Los Angeles—recently broke ground on its Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center. At 200,000 square feet and 20 stories high, the Air and Space Center will almost double the California Science Center’s educational exhibit areas.
The new addition to the Science Center will contain 150 interactive, educational exhibits in three multilevel galleries. The hands-on exhibits will be designed to encourage visitors to investigate scientific and engineering principles of atmospheric flight and the exploration of the universe. The Air and Space Center’s collection of aircraft and spacecraft will be selected to illustrate a key concept on each of its three multilevel galleries—air, space, and shuttle—across four floors and 100,000 square feet of exhibit space.
The Air and Space Center also will become the permanent home of Space Shuttle Endeavour, one of three remaining flown space shuttle orbiters. Endeavour will be presented in a “ready-to-launch” vertical configuration that will include solid rocket boosters and an external tank—the world’s only display of an authentic space shuttle system, according to the Science Center. The June 1 groundbreaking event coincided with the 11th anniversary of Space Shuttle Endeavour’s final touchdown.
The Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center marks the third phase of the California Science Center’s three-phase, three-decade master plan to develop one of the world’s leading science learning centers. Now underway, construction is expected to last three years. At about a year and a half into construction, Space Shuttle Endeavour will be positioned in the Air and Space Center. Architectural design is by ZGF, construction by MATT Construction, and exhibit design by Evidence Design.
On the project team:
Owner and developer: California Science Center Foundation
Design architect and architect of record: ZGF
MEP engineer and structural engineer: Arup
General contractor/construction manager: MATT Construction
Related Stories
Resiliency | Feb 15, 2022
Design strategies for resilient buildings
LEO A DALY's National Director of Engineering Kim Cowman takes a building-level look at resilient design.
Cultural Facilities | Jan 27, 2022
Growth in content providers creates new demand for soundstage facilities
Relativity Architects' Partner Tima Bell discusses how the explosion in content providers has outpaced the availability of TV and film production soundstages in North America and Europe.
Cultural Facilities | Jan 18, 2022
A building in Times Square aspires to be a marketing and arts tool
The 580-ft TSX Broadway will have several LED signs on its exterior, and host an existing 27,000-sf theater that was hoisted 30 ft above street level.
Cultural Facilities | Dec 16, 2021
Museums and other cultural spaces reconsider how to serve their communities
Efforts to raise capital for cultural buildings became necessary during the COVID-19 health crisis.
Giants 400 | Nov 19, 2021
2021 Cultural Facilities Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. cultural facilities sector
Gensler, AECOM, Buro Happold, and Arup top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest cultural facilities sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2021 Giants 400 Report.
Cultural Facilities | Nov 19, 2021
Goettsch Partners completes Lincoln Park Zoo’s Pepper Family Wildlife Center
The project doubles the size of the previous lion habitat.
Cultural Facilities | Nov 17, 2021
Henning Larsen-designed Shaw Auditorium opens at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
The project celebrated its grand opening as part of HKUST’s thirtieth anniversary celebration.
Cultural Facilities | Oct 19, 2021
Niagara Falls is getting a bigger Welcome Center
The GWWO Architects-designed building will mostly sit on the site of the center it replaces.
Reconstruction & Renovation | Oct 13, 2021
Restoration of Ramova Theater in Chicago’s Bridgeport Neighborhood begins
The building was originally built in 1929.
Giants 400 | Aug 30, 2021
2021 Giants 400 Report: Ranking the largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S.
The 2021 Giants 400 Report includes more than 130 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.