Sphere gives lessons in weather, astronomy, more at Science Museum

The South Florida Science Museum has the world in its hands.Crews have installed Science on a Sphere, a 6-foot globe developed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, in the museum. Dinosaur Fossil Replica Landscape-Triceratops Skeleton,Using four projectors and a set of computers, the 200-pound suspended fiberglass globe synchronizes and blends animated images of topography, climate change, ocean temperature, animal migration patterns and more from environmental data gathered from across the world.

One program, Whirling Weather, was developed to teach school children about hurricanes through more than 300 sets of interactive data. Some illustrate features of the sun and the planets in our solar system."People will soon be able to walk up to the Science on a Sphere and select their own preferred program from a menu at the kiosk. It might be hurricanes, Simulation dinosaur replica suppliers,it might be Venus," said Palm Beacher Lewis Crampton, the Science Museum's chief executive officer. Museum staff will guide guests through half the programs, while recorded audio will accompany others, Crampton said.

Tyler Saavedra visited the museum Tuesday with his sixth-grade class at Franklin Academy, a charter school in Pembroke Pines."I think it was very interesting," Saavedra said. "I learned a lot. Some of the words I didn't understand but it was cool how they showed Earth and Mercury and all that."The sphere debuted Saturday. Exhibit designer Anthony Luadi plans to add comfortable built-in seating, instructive signs and graphic wall art to the circular space.A $240,000 grant from the Quantum Foundation of West Palm Beach paid for the sphere, the only such NOAA educational globe at a museum in South Florida.