SPACE SHOW the search for life:
are we alone?
while you're at the museum

In addition to the Space Show, the Museum provides other opportunities for students to reinforce, enrich, and extend their knowledge.

Rose Center

In Scales of the Universe, students compare models of various physical structures in the universe, from superclusters of galaxies to subatomic particles to the size of the Hayden Planetarium Sphere. Where do life forms fit on this scale? How do humans compare in size to other forms referenced along the Scales of the Universe?

As students walk down the Cosmic Pathway, they can gain a sense of the universe's history, from its birth 13 billion years ago to the present day. They should note that animal life is a recent entry onto the stage and that the span of human history is brief when compared with that of the universe.

In the Hall of Planet Earth students can observe dramatic black smoker sulfide structures and images of life forms that inhabit the surrounding area, including a video of the sulfide chimneys at the ocean floor. Students can compare the energy source of this ecosystem—Earth's internal heat—with that of the Sun.

Hall of Biodiversity

This Hall offers many opportunities to investigate the conditions life requires for survival. It also shows the immense diversity of life forms that evolved as organisms adapted to changing conditions on the planet. Invite students to compile a list of various characteristics that life forms have developed in order to survive.

The Dinosaur Halls

The Halls of Saurischian Dinosaurs and Ornithischian Dinosaurs help students trace the evolution and history of the dinosaurs. Ask students to identify similarities among the dinosaurs in each hall and to infer what these animals needed to survive. Students should include any adaptations that they notice.

The Cultural Halls

To learn how other people think about the creation of Earth, the universe, and the cosmos, visit the Hall of Mexico and Central America, Students may observe the Aztec Stone of the Sun, which represents the Sun as the source of all life. They may also observe evidence of the calendrical, mathematical, and astronomical expertise of the Maya. In the Hall of South American Peoples students will find information on native Amonzonia mythology connected with the constellations.

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