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
| Jul 2, 2014
Emerging trends in commercial flooring
Rectangular tiles, digital graphic applications, the resurgence of terrazzo, and product transparency headline today’s commercial flooring trends.
| Jul 1, 2014
Peter Zumthor's LA art museum plan modified with bridge-like section across main thoroughfare
After his design drew concerns about potential damage to LA's La Brea Tar Pits, Peter Zumthor has dramatically revised his concept for the Los Angeles Museum of Art.
| Jul 1, 2014
Zaha Hadid's flowing Heydar Aliyev Center named Design of the Year for 2014
The Design Museum's Design of the Year award has been awarded to Zaha Hadid's Heydar Aliyev Center. Hadid is not only the first woman to win the top prize, but the center is the first architectural project to win the overall competition.
| Jun 30, 2014
Research finds continued growth of design-build throughout United States
New research findings indicate that for the first time more than half of projects above $10 million are being completed through design-build project delivery.
| Jun 25, 2014
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Spring House, Cincinnati’s Union Terminal among 11 Most Endangered Historic Places for 2014
The National Trust for Historic Preservation released its annual list of 11 Most Endangered Historical Sites in the United States for 2014.
| Jun 23, 2014
Gehry's 'glass sail' cultural center for Foundation Louis Vuitton set to open in October
Comissioned by Bernard Arnault, American legendary architect Frank Gehry's newest structure in Paris for Foundation Louis Vuitton will house eleven galleries and an auditorium for performing arts.
| Jun 18, 2014
Arup uses 3D printing to fabricate one-of-a-kind structural steel components
The firm's research shows that 3D printing has the potential to reduce costs, cut waste, and slash the carbon footprint of the construction sector.
| Jun 16, 2014
6 U.S. cities at the forefront of innovation districts
A new Brookings Institution study records the emergence of “competitive places that are also cool spaces.”
| Jun 13, 2014
First look: BIG's spiraling museum for watchmaker Audemars Piguet
The glass-and-steel pavilion's spiral structure acts as a storytelling device for the company's history.
| Jun 12, 2014
Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects' design selected for new UCSC facility
The planned site is a natural landscape among redwood trees with views over Monterey Bay, a site that the architects have called “one of the most beautiful they have ever worked on.”
