The Exploratorium is temporarily closed. Explore our online resources for learning at home.
Exhibits from A–Z
Browse exhibits by their name.
Filter by
A Cell in Motion
Turn the crank and watch a moving cell model. Different parts of the cell extend and retract, and the cell’s internal bulk sometimes shifts from one area to another.
Where: Gallery 4: Living Systems
A Drop to Drink
Getting a drink of water would be very different if you were the size of a doll.
Where: Crossroads: Getting Started
A Pendulum Clock
At first glance, the giant see-through-erector-set-like structure seems to be a realization of one of Leonardo da Vinci's mechanical inventions.
Where: This exhibit is not currently on view.
A Sip of Conflict
Would you, could you, will you drink from a water fountain fashioned from an actual—but unused—toilet? Porcelain is just porcelain . . . right?
Where: Crossroads: Getting Started
A Way of Seeing as It Happens
A mirror and a lens mounted on top project a live image of the outside view into a darkened room.
Where: Fisher Bay Observatory Gallery 6: Observing Landscapes
Adapting to Color
Change your perception of color by flooding your eyes with colored light.
Where: This exhibit is not currently on view.
Aeolian Harp
An eerie orchestral chord floats on the breeze; it’s the shimmering sound of a 27-foot tall harp being strummed by the wind.
Where: Gallery 5: Outdoor Exhibits
Aeolian Landscape
Aeolian Landscape presents a swirling storm of sand inside a large chamber covered by a plexiglass top. A knob on the top of the exhibit rotates a sturdy fan set in the base of the chamber.
All Eyes on Me
Situate yourself at just the right place in space in front of this parabolic mirror array and you’ll see dozens of your own eyeballs peering back at you.
Where: Crossroads: Getting Started
Ames Chairs
What we see can depend on what we expect to see.
Anamorphic Bench
A cylindrical mirror turns a curved bench into something quite different, taking a Renaissance-era illusion into the third dimension. The installation encourages playful interactions among users, bringing people together both visually and socially as they explore the unexpected effects.
Where: Plaza
Animation Station
A stop-motion animation is made of many pictures, each slightly different from the last.
Where: Gallery 2: Tinkering
Animation Tower
Quick-changing views create the illusion of motion.
Anti-Gravity Mirror
Here’s an exhibit where watching is at least half the fun. You can create any number of gravity-defying illusions that will amaze you and your friends: Levitate, fly, swim though the air, grow limbs (and dissolve them), crawl straight up the wall like a lizard—the sky’s the limit.
Archimedes
Archimedes is comprised of two 8-foot diameter dish-like chairs placed 80 feet apart. Each dish’s parabolic curve collects and focuses sound waves and reflects them to participants seated within them. Even whispers uttered from one dish can be clearly heard by the surprised listener seated in the opposite dish.
Where: Plaza
Are Your Cells You?
Examine living HeLa cells—the first “immortal” cell line—and explore ethical and philosophical questions about these historic and controversial cells.
Where: Gallery 4: Living Systems
As One
As One invites two participants to partner, and take turns in the roles of leader or follower as they mirror one another’s movements.
Aurora
A reflector stretches light from colored tiles into long bright ribbons.
Avalanche
Does the sand all pile up in the same way?
Pages
