Take a virtual tour of the Orpheum Children's Science Museum.
Astronomy
Busey Astronomy Kids Corner *Asteroid Mine Out of Order*
Kids can don astronaut suits and launch a rocket with Orphy’s Escape to Space. Next, grab a friend and mine for metals at the Asteroid Mine or swing by the moon and play on the Lunar Lander. This exhibit space will make for a fun, interactive, and educational experience for the whole family.
The Busey Astronomy Kids Corner is supported by First Busey Corp. and was designed by students in the Senior Capstone Design Program in the Department of Mechanical Science & Engineering at Illinois and by museum staff and volunteers in 2018.
Biology
Vet Clinic
If you love animals and you want to care for them when you grow up, then stop by the Vet Clinic to practice being a veterinarian. Use our X-ray Machine to diagnose your favorite pets and animals. We have penguins, a chameleon, cats, dogs, and a guinea pig that need the best treatment from the best veterinarian in town: YOU! This exhibit was donated by the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Critter Corner
Have you met Rahl, the Leopard Gecko? What about Galatea, our 22-year-old Chilean Rose-Hair Tarantula, or Peter, the Salmon Pink Bird-eating Tarantula? Well, they really want to meet you and introduce you to all of their friends. In the Critter Corner, you can meet Buddy, our Bearded Dragon. Also, our friends Corny, the Corn Snake, and Windy, the Box Turtle, are our long-time reptilian residents. Shelby and Moe are our Aquatic Turtles. Finally, there are two species of giant Cockroaches.
Orpheum Butterfly Garden
With over 30 different species of plants, most native to Illinois, this outdoor exhibit is a hotspot for pollinators like bees and butterflies and other animals. The Orpheum Butterfly Garden was conceptualized and built by the Entomology Graduate Student Association from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2016.
Geology/Hydrology
Dino Dig
Be a Dinosaur Detective! Junior paleontologists will enjoy excavating for dinosaur bones in the Courtyard. This exhibit is great for outdoor adventures and discoveries. If you get your shovel and bucket, maybe you too can find the Theropod Fossil buried beneath the sand. Or, you can learn about stratigraphy and the geologic timescale in our three-tiered Excavation Box designed and constructed by the Geology Graduate Students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Water Flume
The Water Flume was donated by the United States Geological Survey in 2011.
SS Ackermann Tugboat
Don your safety vests and grab a mate for a ride down the Mississippi River. Tugboat captains can explore the engine room, observation deck and cabin. Can you pilot the cargo safely down the river without crashing into the bank? The SS Ackermann Tugboat was made possible thanks to the generosity of the Ackermann family.
Arts & Culture
Archaeology Field Station
Learn how to be an archaeologist in this outdoor role-playing exhibit. From surveying to excavation, analysis, and curation, kids will discover what it takes to be a world-renowned junior archaeologist! The Archaeology Field Station and Excavation Unit were designed and constructed by the Archaeology Student Society from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Heidkamp Home Improvement in 2016.
Pixel Wall
Pixels are everywhere: on your TV screens, computer monitors, and phone displays. An array of pixels make a picture, and you can use your own set of pixels to make your own image at the Pixel Wall.
Orphy's Art Wall
Yes, you can draw on the walls here! Find your favorite colors and get artsy at this fun exhibit. The Art Wall was created in 2018 by staff and volunteers at the museum.
Physics
Air Maze
Send scarves flying through a maze of tubes at this exhibit. Students at the University Laboratory High School built the Air Maze in 2015.
Bernoulli Blower
Kids can levitate balls at this exhibit.
Whisper Dishes
Share a message with a friend in these parabolic dishes in the courtyard. The shape of the dish amplifies even the faintest sounds.
