The Exploratorium has received numerous awards and nominations from educational organizations, science institutions, and Internet pioneers. We are proud that we have been recognized for our work in creating a culture of learning through innovative environments, programs, and tools to help people nurture their curiosity about the world around them.

Corporation & Foundation Donors:

2012

Best of 2012 Awards
Sign Up For Camp

Exploratorium Summer Camps was awarded the Best of 2012 from Sign Up For Camp.

#1 Science & Technology Museum
Trekaroo.com

Exploratorium was voted #1 on the 2012 Top 10 Best Science & Technology Museums for Trekaroo, a website for kids, trips and tips.

2011

2011 Public Service Science Award
National Science Boards

Awarded to the Exploratorium for its contributions to the public understanding of science and engineering (May 2011). This is one of the most prestigious national honors in science given to an organization, short of a Presidential Medal.

Best Night at the Museum: After Dark
7x7 Magazine

Exploratorium's After Dark event was voted Best Night at the Museum as a part of 7X7SF Best of the City.

Core77 Design Award 2011
core77 Design Magazine & Resource

Core77 awarded the Exploratorium the 2011 Design Award for its Tinkering Studio, notable for its design education initiatives.

2010

THEA Classic Award
Themed Entertainment Association

The Exploratorium was awarded the prestigious Thea Classic Award by the Themed Entertainment Association for having “pioneered the ‘interactive exhibit movement’” and “set a new direction for science education.”

2008

AAAS/Subaru SB&F Winner: Excellence in Science Books
AAAS & Subaru

Exploratopia, the Exploratorium’s hands-on book of experiments, won the 2008 AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prize for Excellence in Science Books, in the Hands-On category.

Winner of the International Science and Engineering Visualization Challenge
The Association of Medical Illustrators

Exploratorium's Visualization Laboratory and Linda Nye received First Place in the Visual Illustration Category for "Zoom into the Human Bloodstream."

2006

Gold MUSE Award - Interpretation and Education in Science
American Association of Museums

Exploratorium's "Science of Gardening" website won the Gold Muse Awards in the science category.

Public Funders:

2012

Top 100 Educational Websites of 2012
Homeschool.com

Exploratorium made Homeschool.com's Top 100 Educational Websites for 2012 in the science category.

2011

Best Biotech Website
Genetic Engineering and Biology News

The Exploratorium was voted Best Biotech Website by Genetic Engineering and Biology News.

Top 25 Websites for Teaching and Learning
American Association of School Librarians (AASL)

Exploratorium is awarded one of the top 25 websites by the American Association of School Libraries for fostering the qualities of innovation, creativity, active participation, and collaboration.

Best of the Web Award
Museums and the Web 2011 Conference

Exploratorium wins the best "Long Lived" institutional website by Museum and the Web Conference.

2009

Online Presence: 2009 Silver MUSE Award
MUSE

Never Lost: Polynesian Navigation is a multimedia, bilingual (English/Hawaiian) website that immerses the user in the techniques and traditions of Polynesian navigation. Visitors to the site learn to use natural signs to find their way, meet Hawaiian master navigators as they "talk story," and use an online planetarium for a navigator’s tour of the night sky.

Community: 2009 Gold MUSE Award
American Association of Museums

Exploratorium's Total Solar Eclipse: Live from China website won the gold award in the "Community" category.

Online Presence: 2009 Silver MUSE Award
American Association of Museums

Exploratorium's Ice Stories: Dispatches from Polar Scientists website won the Muse Silver Award in the "Online Presence" category.