Top 10 Science Museums in California, United States

This property is temporarily closed. The UC Davis Tahoe Science Center has science exhibits including a various hands-on activities, 3-D theater, research vessel, virtual laboratory, "Shaping Watersheds" Interactive Sandbox, and more.

DECEMBER 9 TO MARCH 27: CLOSED The Museum is open from early spring to the second weekend in December. Mt. Shasta Sisson Museum is a self-supported, volunteer operated museum with a 501(c)(3) tax status. To fulfill its mission, the museum has exhibits on the history and science related to Mt. Shasta and the surrounding areas. There are many hands-on activities for children and adults. The museum shares the same grounds as a state fish hatchery, where visitors love to view and feed the fish. The Museum consists of three large exhibit halls and an events room for special activities and displays. New exhibits are installed at the museum on a regular basis. A changing array of special installations including quilt shows and art displays are arranged every 6 weeks in the Events Room.

MOXI, The Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation, is a one-of-a-kind museum for all ages designed to ignite learning through interactive experiences in science and creativity. The museum's three floors are filled with 17,000 square feet of hands-on exhibits that encourage open-ended discovery, analytical assessment, experimentation, play and just plain fun.

From treasures of the pharaoh to the mystical ritual of African masks to Mesozoic dinosaur skeletons, the Museum of Ancient Wonders awes visitors. More than 200 reproduction artifacts and laboratory fossil casts gathered from 30 museums worldwide.

The Exploratorium is temporarily closed to the public. In accordance with local and state public health orders and recommendations, the Exploratorium is temporarily closed to the public. We have had no known cases of exposure to COVID-19. The health and safety of Exploratorium visitors, employees, and volunteers is our top priority. As soon as we reopen the doors, we look forward to welcoming you, your family, and all those committed to curiosity and joyful learning. In the meantime, please visit our website for digital learning opportunities that you and people across the globe can use to explore the world around them in any environment. Thank you!

The world’s only aquarium-planetarium-rainforest-living museum. Come nose-to-beak with penguins and parrots, watch sharks and sting rays cruise beneath your feet, and feel the spray of the California coast. Fly to Mars (and beyond the Milky Way!) from the safety of your planetarium seat, take a virtual safari in African Hall, or climb into the canopy of a living rainforest. Face your fears—and an albino alligator—inside the Swamp, and meet scientists as they return from research expeditions around the world. From the depths of a Philippine coral reef to the outer reaches of the Universe, it's all inside the California Academy of Sciences.

The Lawrence Hall of Science is UC Berkeley's Public Science Center. Join us and discover your inner scientist through fun and hands-on explorations in engineering, physics, astronomy, and more! Visit the Hall's Science on a Sphere® and take control of a planet on a 6-ft diameter globe, meet an animal friend in the Animal Discovery Room, and design, build, and test your own creations in Design Quest. Looking for even more ways to explore science? Add a Planetarium or National Geographic 3D Theater show to your visit (Planetarium and 3D Theater admission is extra).

Come touch a friendly shark, see how marine scientists work, and take in the spectacular Monterey Bay. Our exhibit hall offers a deeper dive into the adventure of ocean research here in Santa Cruz and around the world. Visit us and explore the fascinating world of marine science and conservation. We look forward to meeting you! The Seymour Marine Discovery Center is a community-supported marine science education center of the University of California, Santa Cruz.