The South Carolina State Museum is celebrating Spring Break from April 3–11 with extended hours, free general admission for kids 12 and under, and a new exhibition, Make Some Noise: the Science of Sound. The museum will be open all week, except for Easter Sunday, and the BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina Planetarium and the Boeing Observatory will also re-open, with health and safety precautions in place.
“We are happy to offer families the opportunity to enjoy a fun, safe space for Spring Break,” said State Museum Executive Director, Amy Bartow-Melia. “We are able to provide guests with a socially distanced environment thanks to our spacious building and we continue to require face coverings for staff and guests, per City of Columbia Ordinance.”
The State Museum will kick-off the Spring Break week with the opening of the brand new exhibition, Make Some Noise: the Science of Sound. Presented in English and Spanish, this bilingual experience will explore many different aspects of sound, including how sound travels and how it is measured, as well as how humans and other animals hear and produce sound. A collection of audio clips and an animated video will have guests considering how sounds can evoke nostalgia, impact our psychology, and manipulate our emotions.
As guests move through the exhibition, they will have the opportunity to experiment with sound through a variety of interactives. The Chladni plate, for example, demonstrates how sound waves travel across the surface of the metal plate, forming intricate designs in sand. As guests adjust the sound’s frequency those patterns will shift into a new work of art. A spectrogram activity allows guests to visualize the range of frequencies that combine to form familiar sounds, such as birds chirping, the pluck of harp strings, and more. These interactives and others will encourage visitors to make this exhibition their own – and to make some noise in the process!
The State Museum is also offering Virtual At-Home Spring Break Camp sessions, April 5-9. These daily morning camps will focus on a different theme for each session, including astronomy, art, history and more. Campers can participate on their own and/or families are welcome to join in and work together throughout the session. Camps are $25 for the general public and $20 for museum members. Registration is now open on the museum’s website at scmuseum.org.
General admission to the State Museum is $8.95 for adults, $7.95 for Seniors, FREE for children (ages 12 and under) from April 3-11, and free for museum members all year. Planetarium shows are an additional charge. Due to the museum’s need to manage guest capacity, online advance ticket purchase is highly recommended at scmuseum.org.
Although closed Easter Sunday, the museum will open over the rest of the Spring Break holiday (April 3–11) as follows: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Monday through Saturday and 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
