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Date: 4/5/2022
SPRINGFIELD – A new project from the Springfield Science Museum entitled “Equitable Access to the Night Sky” is being funded from a $750,000 federal earmark.
Described as a “game changer for the museum” by the Science Museum’s Director Jenny Powers, the funds will create a full-dome, digital projection system with state-of-the-art software for the planetarium to augment the historical star ball. The change will add multi-cultural perspectives to the night sky, as well as providing an online digitization of the observatory and a multi-sensory astronomy exhibits for blind or low vision visitors, according to the Science Museum’s press release.
The earmark was garnered by Sen. Edward Markey, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Congressman Richard Neal as a part of the $138 million secured by the state. The funds will support 120 community projects. In a statement, Markey reflected upon the impact the funding will have in strengthen the community and economy as a whole.
“This federal funding for Massachusetts means we can initiate, strengthen, and expand community-based projects that serve our families, businesses, and cities and towns every day. These projects will spur our economy, strengthen our resiliency, expand access to important health care, promote clean energy and climate solutions, and help feed and house our most vulnerable in every region of our commonwealth,” said Markey.
The astronomy addition marks another expansion of the Science Museum. In 2019, the museum added the Smithsonian Spark!Lab, a hands-on interactive exhibit that marks the only Spark!Lab in the northeast.
After upgrading the Seymour Planetarium’s seating and star ball in 2021, the museum is preparing to open the International Space Station gallery in June 2022. The exhibit will spotlight science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) learning and includes interactive stations, according to the press release.
The new exhibits serve as a part of the museum’s strategic three-year plan to prioritize diversity, inclusion, equity and access as the museum builds toward the future. Powers stressed the importance of continuing to innovate the space in a statement.
“The Science Museum must respond to community interest. We must provide relevant opportunities that draw everyone into the new, tech-savvy, multi-dimensional world … This money will help us bridge equity and access gaps. We are already a beloved institution; we will have an even greater impact as a public asset with the upgrades this money will provide,” said Powers.
Readers can discover more information about the earmark and other new exhibits at https://springfieldmuseums.org/about/springfield-science-museum/.