Maryland Science Center, Baltimore, MD - Inner Harbor, Baltimore, MD Interactive Science Museum is on the Water Front at Inner Harbor, Baltimore

Maryland Science Center, Baltimore, MD, is located at 601 Light Street in the Inner Harbor neighborhood of this city.

It is run by the Maryland Academy of Sciences, which is the oldest scientific institution in the state, dating back to 1797. It began as an informal discussion group with a small museum, a library and collection of artifacts on Charles Street. It was nearly completely lost to a fire in the late 19th Century.

After WWII the small collection was soon housed on the third floor of the Enoch Pratt Library.

It was not until 1976 that sufficient space was acquired to open a facility with sufficient room and a state-of-the-art planetarium on the inner Harbor. A new atrium lobby and I-Max theater were added in the mid 1980s. In May of 2004 major renovations were finished.

The I-Max Theater at the Maryland Science Center, Baltimore, MD, has stadium seating for viewing films projected onto its 5-story high screen. Feature films are shown here as well as documentaries.

Over a dozen full sized dinosaurs can be seen in the dinosaur exhibit, along with live toads and lizards. Dig pits and a hands-on field laboratory encourage an understanding of paleontology.

The high tech TerraLink exhibit on earth science includes interactive experiences with the latest technologies. Explorers get to see seismic activity monitoring in Real Time, interact with a hands-on tornado vortex simulator and view the live "crab cam.''

Another section is dedicated exclusively to the Maryland Blue Crab. There are also sections dedicated to the human organism and space. These latter sections have interactive technology components like the TerraLink mentioned above.

The museum has a discovery center called the Kids Room for children up to 8 years of age.

As many as 3 traveling exhibits may also be at the museum at any given time.

Maryland Science Center, Baltimore, MD, is home to a rooftop observatory that is open free to the public for stargazing on Fridays and on Saturdays with admission. It is also available for rental for private star searching events.

There are other hands on demonstrations and multimedia films and activities throughout the day at this science learning center.

There is a museum caf, on the premises as well as a brown bag area for people that bring their own foods. A science store is on the premises selling goods to stimulate scientific curiosity.

Rides are available for a fee on a Segway scooter.

Events are regularly organized for educators, adults as well as for families and children. School field trips and homeschooling visits are encouraged by the facility.

This waterfront museum rents space for any type of private event with more than 100,000 sq. ft. available for rentals.

The Science Center is wheelchair accessible as are many of its restrooms as well.