Located on the Embarcadero, between Fisherman’s Wharf and the Ferry Building, is the newly- relocated Exploratorium. In addition to its role as the nation’s premier science center, the 300 million dollar museum is also an environmental marvel. Heated and cooled by water from the bay, and powered by high tech solar panels, the 33,000 square feet of display space is completely energy independent.

Despite its increased size and innovative new location, the Exploratorium stays true to the intent of its original founder, physicist Frank Oppenheimer: it promotes learning through experimentation and interaction. The exhibits themselves are noticeably low tech, and rooted in the basic principles of physics and motion.

Oppenheimer grew up in New York City and graduated from Johns Hopkins University. He went on to earn a Ph.D., and in 1945, joined the Manhattan Project in Los Alamos. Under the direction of his brother, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Frank made instrumental contributions to the United States’ production of the first atomic bomb.

After the war, Frank Oppenheimer became a Physics professor at the University of Minnesota; however, the Congressional Committee on Un-American Activities blacklisted Oppenheimer in 1949, derailing his academic career. For nearly a decade, Oppenheimer quietly raised cattle on his ranch in Pagossa Springs, Colorado.

During this time, Oppenheimer took a position as a science teacher at the local high school. With nearly 300 students, and very limited resources, Oppenheimer struggled to engage students with textbooks alone. He took students on field trips to the local dump, using discarded auto parts to teach the principles of machinery, heat, and electricity.

At the close of the McCarthy era, Oppenheimer’s academic exile ended, and he accepted an appointed position at the University of Colorado. His experience with public education, however, influenced the work that would dominate the rest of life. Convinced that hands on experimentation was a necessary supplement to science education, Oppenheimer set out to recreate the science museum experience.

Oppenheimer petitioned the city of San Francisco for use of the Palace of Fine Arts, a vacant building originally constructed for the 1915 World’s Fair. He proposed a plan for an interactive museum, where visitors could touch and experiment with the exhibits. The city approved the endeavor, and in 1969, the Exploratorium opened to the public.

In addition to educating millions of visitors, the Exploratorium sends educators into underserved communities to bring science to children unable to visit the center. The museum also created the Teacher Institute, designed to help educators bring meaningful, hands-on science lessons into the classroom.

Although revolutionary in 1969, Oppenheimer’s vision of an interactive science center is now the industry norm. Today, cities all over the world continue replicating the Exploratorium model.