ECO DISCOVERY ZONE
Virtual Reality Headsets
Attendants and postcards will provide instructions on downloading apps and viewing pre-selected content where you can explore fantastic natural sites and experiences. Provided by Earth Day ATX.
Weather Wonders with Troy Kimmel
Featuring the Teaching Tornado provided by American Educational Products, a Davis weather station, and rain gauge
Explore the fascinating dimensions of weather and how we observe it with one of Austin's best-known broadcast meteorologists, Troy Kimmel. Watch a swirling tornado form right before your eyes in the teaching tornado simulator, or learn how leading experts measure and interact with weather and the atmosphere, all in one place!
Brought to you by Troy Kimmel
Mad Science: Mineral Mania
Investigate the powerful process that shapes our planet and forms rocks, minerals and gems. Unearth gems that you get to take home after you identify them!
Brought to you by Adrianna Hagan
Vermiculture
Get a hands-on feel for worm and worm castings!
What do worms feel like? Find out by worming your fingers into the bin of worms and worm castings. Provided by Texas Big Worm.
Brought to you by Brian Fraus
Build Solar-powered Cars!
Fun and hands-on activity to learn about renewable energy.
In a 60 minute lesson, kids will learn about solar energy, assemble the cars, and then test them outside. Whose car will out race the others?
Brought to you by Kaiba White, Josh Rudow
Live Butterfly Walkthrough and Interactive Feeding
Come feed live Monarch and Painted Lady Butterflies
Taking place in a 10x20 mesh tent enclosure with zippered entry and exit at opposite ends. Monarch and Painted Lady Butterflies are free to fly around, meaning you can experience the thrill of seeing butterflies up-close in real life, rather than on a TV screen. Visitors will be provided a cotton swab with sweet liquid encouraging them to alight in front of your eyes.
Brought to you by Liz Cannedy
The Sights and Sounds of Austin Birds
Hear the call of native Austin birds like grackles, blue jays, cardinals!
Flock toward Travis Audubon’s activity table to learn all about the birds outside your front door! Learn neat facts about birds you can see in and around Austin while listening to the calls they make. Do you know what grackles, blue jays, and cardinals sound like? With Travis Audubon, you can be an expert at identifying birds in no time! Don’t forget to check out our Wonderful Wingspans Banner, where you can compare your own “wingspan” to birds like California Condors and Bald Eagles!
Brought to you by Caley Zuzula
TXMOST's Discovery Dome
Our mobile planetarium will bring the stars and science to the Earth Day festival!
The Texas Museum of Science & Technology's Discovery Dome will bring the stars to the 2018 Earth Day festival. Our mobile planetarium, inside an 18 foot inflatable dome, utilizes a portable theater and a state-of-the-art digital projection system. We will showcase a combination of live shows led by our astronomy educator and immersive films on natural selection and nano-biology! Great fun for all ages!
Brought to you by Lucia Brimer, Bobby Corley
PBS and YouTube Star Joe Hanson
Come and meet PBS and YouTube star Joe Hanson, creator of It's Okay to be Smart and creator and co-host Hot Mess, a new climate and environment show from PBS. Relax and watch an episode or two in their chill-out lounge and learn about some nature activities you can do with your family.
Brought to you by Dr. Joe Hanson.
3D Watershed Model
3D model illustrates the flow water in our environment!
Interactive 3D model illustrates the flow water in a watershed and the potential impacts of pollution on creeks, rivers, lakes and aquifers. Provided by Austin Independent School District Science and Health Resource Center.
Experience the Sounds of the Rainforest
Let your senses travel to the rainforest of South America!
Let your senses travel to the rainforest of South America through an immersive rainforest listening experience brought to you by Rainforest Partnership.
Brought to you by Niyanta Spelman, Aubrey LeBlanc
Live Action Bee Hive
Want to see a live comb of bees, learn a bunch of cool bee facts, play "spot the queen" and get to handle some real beekeeping equipment? Come see the bee booth in the discovery zone! A collaboration between Austin Bees (Hive builder and live bee remover), and BEEVO (the Beekeeping Society of the University of Texas at Austin) will be sure to leave your head buzzing full of bee knowledge and endless curiosity at the incredible superorganism that is the honeybee colony!
Brought to you by Brandon Fehrenkamp
View Local Endangered Species
We will bring aquaria housing various endangered species and discuss the importance protecting endangered species from extinction. We will also display several non-listed preserved specimens, and we will have a fun game where participants can guess which species are native for a small prize, allowing us to discuss the negative impacts invasive species can have on our local ecosystems. Additionally, an there will be an invertebrate display, which includes monarch butterfly specimens will also be a part of this area.
Brought to you by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.