South Florida Museum, An Out of this World Film Series in April & Summer Camp Registration Now Open

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Museum Media News:

The South Florida Museum’s one-stop news update for the media
For Immediate Release
March 24, 2016
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Summer Camp, Space Movies & More…
We know summer is still a few months away, but it will be here before we know it. Now is the time to register for our summer science camps — they fill up early! Camp details are below.

We also have two special movie series coming up that you’ll surely enjoy: Some of our favorite Star Trek movies (in April) and the original Star Wars trilogy (in August). Come celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Bishop Planetarium by taking a trip back through space and time. (Speaking of space… did you know that March 20 was Extraterrestrial Abductions Day?)

In April (& August)
movieSpace Film Series: Star Wars & Star Trek
Please join us for two out-of-this world movie series celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Bishop Planetarium. Throughout April, we will be showing some of our favorite space-related movies: The original Star Wars series, along with three of our most fave Star Trek movies.
Tickets: $5 for Museum Members; $7 for non-members. Beer, wine, soft drinks and snacks are available for purchase. Please arrive promptly; pre-purchased seats will be held until five minutes before program start time, then will be released for resale. No refunds or exchanges will be given after the start of the program.

The Star Trek Series
  • 7 p.m. Friday, April 1: Star Trek: The Motion Picture, 1979. When an alien spacecraft of enormous power is spotted approaching Earth, Admiral Kirk resumes command of the Starship Enterprise in order to intercept, examine and hopefully stop the intruder. PG. 2 hours, 12 minutes.
  • 7 p.m. Friday, April 8: Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan, 1982. With the assistance of the Enterprise crew, Admiral Kirk must stop an old nemesis, Khan Noonien Singh, from using the life-generating Genesis Device as the ultimate weapon. PG. 1 hour, 53 minutes.
  • 7 p.m. Friday, April 15: Star Trek: The Search for Spock, 1984. Admiral Kirk and his bridge crew risk their careers stealing the decommissioned Enterprise to return to the restricted Genesis planet to recover Spock’s body. PG. 1 hour, 45 minutes.

In August
The Star Wars Series
  • 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 12: Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, 1977. Luke Skywalker joins forces with a Jedi knight, a cocky pilot, a wookiee and two droids to save the galaxy from the Empire’s world-destroying battle station, while also attempting to rescue Princess Leia from the evil Darth Vader. PG. 2 hours, 1 minute.
  • 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 19: Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, 1980. After the rebels have been brutally overpowered by the Empire on their newly established base, Luke Skywalker takes advanced Jedi training with Master Yoda, while his friends are pursued by Darth Vader as part of his plan to capture Luke. PG. 2 hours, 4 minutes.
  • 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 26: Star Wars Episode VI: The Return of the Jedi, 1983. After rescuing Han Solo from the palace of Jabba the Hutt, the rebels attempt to destroy the second Death Star while Luke struggles to make Vader return from the dark side of the Force. PG. 2 hours, 11 minutes.

campSummer Science Camp Registration Now Open

Space, volcanoes, sharks, survival and a summer time machine are just some of the topics on tap this summer at the South Florida Museum, where we offer six weeks of summer camp for elementary and middle school students.

Registration is now open for our Summer Science Camps for students in grades 1 through 5 and students in grades 6 through 8. Camps take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday (except for holiday weeks). Snacks are provided but students must bring their own lunches each day.
Elementary-Level Camp (for kids entering grades 1-5):
Week 1* (June 14 – 17): “Space: The Final Frontier”
Week 2 (June 20 – 24): “Blow Your Top: Volcanoes!”
Week 3 (June 27 – July 1): “Survival Camp”
Week 4* (July 5 – 8): “Smile, It’s Shark Week”
Week 5 (July 11 – 15): “Ancient Civilizations”
Week 6 (July 18 – 22): “Frozen: The Real Ice Age”
*Holiday week. No camp on Monday.

Middle-School Level Camp (for kids entering grades 6-8):
Week 1* (June 14 – 17): “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids!”
Week 2 (June 20 – 24): “Summer Camp Time Machine”
Week 3 (June 27 – July 1): “Summer Camp Time Machine”
Week 4* (July 5 – 8): “Let’s Sling Some Paint”
Week 5 (July 11 – 15): “Summer Camp Time Machine”
Week 6 (July 18 – 22): “Summer Camp Time Machine”
*Holiday week. No camp on Monday.
Registration Details:
A $50 non-refundable deposit is required for each camp to secure a slot. Full payment is accepted at registration or required by one week prior to the camp’s start date. Space is limited and slots will be filled on a first come, first served basis.
Camp Fees:
Museum Members: $200/session; Additional Member campers receive the 10 percent family discount and pay just $180/session.
Non-Member Campers: $250/session
*Fees for camps that take place during holiday weeks (June 14-17 & July 5-8) are reduced:
Museum Members: $160, with additional Member campers paying $140
Non-Member Campers: $210
Register now or contact Susan McCarthy, at 941.746.4131, ext. 113, or [email protected].

Saturday, April 2
Family Night: Exploring Rivers 
On the first Saturday of most months, the Museum stays open late for an evening of family fun. Each Family Night offers a different theme with hands-on activities and special films or performances. Enjoy a manatee presentation, extra Planetarium shows and the Rock Hall of Fame show at 8:15 pm.
This month, our theme is Exploring Rivers. Alligators, manatees, turtles and otters — so many creatures call the river home and on Family Night, we will explore the nature of these waterways. Meet author Gail Hedrick whose book, Something Stinks!, uses water analysis to solve an ecological mystery. Guests will have the opportunity to perform their own water quality experiments using samples from local rivers and come up with new ideas on how to protect and conserve our drinking water. The evening includes a special Water Dance lesson and performance by Sarasota Contemporary Dance.
  • When: 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, April 2
  • Full Schedule
  • Cost: Family Night includes reduced Museum Admission after 3 p.m. Adults: $9; seniors (65-plus): $8; children ages 4-12): $7. Children 3 & younger get in free.

Saturday, April 9
Upcycle Underground 
The South Florida Museum is shaking up its pre-teen programming this year with an exciting new monthly challenge designed just for kids in grades 6 through 8. Called IQuest, this new program offers students an opportunity to use their creative, theatrical, artistic and science skills to solve challenges — and have a great time doing it.

In our next program, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Join the movement to “upcycle” old products to help recycle, reduce and reuse waste. What fabulous new life can you bring to a pile of old junk?

  • This is a kids-only program
  • Tickets required; space is limited. $5 per student (includes pizza slice & drink)
  • Reserve now

April 11
volRecognizing Our Stellar Supporters
April marks National Volunteer Appreciation Month and many nonprofit organizations throughout the nation will be recognizing those who help lead their communities by volunteering to make them a better place.

At the South Florida Museum, our volunteers fill vital roles, from acting as docents in the Museum, to helping us care for Snooty and his pals to archiving our region’s most important historical treasures.

South Florida Museum’s annual volunteer recognition luncheon, “You are Stellar: Celebrating Our Volunteers” will take place at noon on Monday, April 11, 2016.

New Schedule Includes New Programs
The Museum has updated our daily presentation schedules to offer our visitors even more ways to engage during visits.

The updated schedule includes these two new programs:

Museum debuts “DeTour: Your Earth Address”
Travel to the edge of the observable universe during the Bishop Planetarium show Passport to the Universe, then journey back to Earth to explore one of the most unique landmasses on the planet. Dive into Florida’s natural history to discover how our state emerged from the ocean and how an abundance of sunshine nourishes diverse ecosystems that support extraordinary Earthlings like the Florida manatee.

Experience this new “DeTour” and learn about the connections between the universe, Florida manatees and us. This special tour connects the 1:15 p.m. Passport to the Universe program in the Bishop Planetarium with the 2:15 p.m. manatee presentation in the Parker Manatee Aquarium and includes several Museum stops along the way.

  • Tour available Monday through Saturday (start by viewing the 1:15 p.m. Passport to the Universe show in the Planetarium, then meet at the FeNi meteorite at 1:45 p.m.)
  • Free with regular admission
  • Full Museum Presentation Schedule
Journey to the Stars in the Bishop Planetarium
Join us for this brand-new show, opening just in time for the 50th anniversary of the Bishop Planetarium.

This spectacular space show is narrated by Academy Award-winning actress Whoopi Goldberg and features extraordinary images from telescopes on the ground and in space along with stunning, never-before-seen visualizations of physics-based simulations. The dazzling Journey to the Stars launches visitors through space and time and allows them to experience the life and death of the stars in our night sky, including our own nurturing Sun. Tour familiar stellar formations, explore new celestial mysteries and discover the fascinating, unfolding story that connects us all to the stars. Those who come along for the journey may never see the night sky in the same way again.
Journey to the Stars is an engrossing, immersive theater experience created by the American Museum of Natural History’s Hayden Planetarium astrophysicists, scientific visualization and media production experts with the cooperation of the NASA and more than 40 leading scientists from the United States and abroad.

fifty

Fun Space Facts: 50 for 50 
Because 2016 marks the 50th anniversary of the Bishop Planetarium — the Gulf Coast’s premier astronomy education facility — we thought we’d have a little fun by pulling together a few lesser-known space-related facts. (Cocktail party fodder, perhaps?) Our readers will see them in our weekly South Florida Museum Connection enewsletter (sign up if you’d like to get the newsletter) and we’ll also be sharing them through our social media channels, like Facebook. You can also read them online.

50 for 50: Week 10

Did you know that March 20 was Extraterrestrial

Credit: Dreamstime via LiveScience.

Abductions Day? In “The Abduction Experience: A Critical Evaluation of Theory and Evidence,” Journal of UFO Studies, 1995/96, Stuart Appelle states:

“The abduction experience continues to be a phenomenon in need of an explanation. For the sake of science — and the sake of the experiencers — a continuing effort to establish an explanation is both necessary and appropriate.”

Important abduction experiencers include Elaine (see Feb. 14), Barry (see Close Encounters of the Third Kind), Russell Casse (see Independence Day). Possible abduction experiencers include Judge Crater, Jimmy Hoffa, and our car keys just about every other day.

Jimmy Hoffa: Abducted by aliens?

Open until Summer 2016
World’s Largest Coprolite Collection 
When Guinness World Records certified George Frandsen’s coprolite collection as the world’s largest collection of fossilized dung, South Florida Museum staff supervised the hours-long count to help ensure all of the Guinness World Records rules were followed. This unique collection — which includes a fossilized poo specimen nicknamed ‘Precious’ believed to have been left behind by a crocodilian species — remains on display at the Museum through Summer 2016. Visiting is free with regular admission.
About the South Florida Museum

As the largest natural and cultural history museum on Florida’s Gulf Coast, the South Florida Museum offers engaging exhibits as well as educational programs that interpret the scientific and cultural knowledge of Florida, the world and our universe. In addition to permanent exhibits, the Museum features a constantly changing lineup of temporary exhibitions — offering something new to discover with each visit. The Museum includes the all-digital Bishop Planetarium Theater and the Parker Manatee Aquarium. The Bishop Planetarium is the Gulf Coast’s premier astronomy education facility. Now celebrating its 50th year in operation, the Planetarium is outfitted with a state-of-the-art Planetarium and projection system with stunning multimedia capabilities. The Parker Manatee Aquarium is home to Snooty™, Manatee County’s official mascot and the oldest known manatee in the world, as certified by Guinness World Records. Snooty shares his Aquarium pool with other manatees that have been injured or orphaned and are being rehabilitated for return to the wild as part of the Manatee Rehabilitation and Release Partnership.

South Florida Museum hours vary by season. Visit SouthFloridaMuseum.org for details or call 941-746-4131.

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The South Florida Museum, P.O.Box 9265, 201 10th Street West, Bradenton, FL 34205

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