Discovery Place is a science and technology museum for visitors of all ages located in the Uptown area of Charlotte, North Carolina

Charlotte, North Carolina

Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...

. Discovery Place brings science to life through hands-on interactive exhibits, thrilling activities and experiments, a larger-than-life IMAX Dome Theatre, and boundless other educational opportunities and programs. The Museum, which first opened in 1981, recently underwent an 18-month, $31.6 million renovation that transformed it into a reimagined state-of-the-art science and technology museum. The most recent exhibition additions to Discovery Place include World Alive, Fantastic-Frogs and three Explore More hands-on labs.

Discovery Place also operates an IMAX Dome Theatre, sometimes referred to as an OMNIMAX

Omnimax

Omnimax may refer to:* A variation of the IMAX film format that is projected on an angled dome* A shorthand expression for a deity that is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, and/or omnibenevolent...

 theatre. Discovery Place's IMAX Dome Theatre offers an immersive, up-close movie experience in the largest IMAX Dome Theatre in the Carolinas.

Renovation and expansion

Discovery completed a renovation in June 2010 that began in January 2009. This $31.6 million renovation was a complete overhaul which brought all new innovative and interactive science and technology exhibits to the Museum.

Charlotte Nature Museum

Located at 1658 Sterling Road, adjacent to Freedom Park

Freedom Park (Charlotte, North Carolina)

Freedom Park is the "Central Park" of Charlotte, North Carolina. Located at 1900 East Boulevard, between Charlotte's historic Dilworth and Myers Park neighborhoods, the park is centered on a lake, and is about from the heart of Charlotte's downtown area....

, the Charlotte Nature Museum offers nature-based fun and learning for young children. The Museum features interactive nature exhibits and live animal displays, including a butterfly

Butterfly

A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...

 pavilion, live species, insects, and a variety of native North Carolinia animals. The Museum offers many education programs for schools, parents and the public, and features a summer camp program.

Discovery Place KIDS

In Fall 2010, Discovery Place opened its first Discovery Place KIDS Museum in Huntersville, North Carolina

Huntersville, North Carolina

Huntersville is a large town in Mecklenburg and Cabarrus Counties, North Carolina, United States. The population was 46,773 at the 2010 census, which makes Huntersville the 19th largest city in North Carolina. It is located about 12 miles north of uptown Charlotte. It is thought that the town...

. Part of a larger vision to develop other Discovery Place KIDS locations across the region, Discovery Place KIDS-Huntersville appeals to families with young children and offers those living in outlying suburban communities the opportunity to visit a Discovery Place Museum closer to home. An $18.7 million public-private venture between Discovery Place, Inc. and the City of Huntersville, Discovery Place KIDS-Huntersville offers unique, learning-through-play experiences for young children.

External links

• Discovery Place - includes Charlotte Nature Center