Big Back Yard EarthScapes Mini Golf and Exhibits Fact sheet

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WHAT

Big Back Yard, the Science Museum's outdoor exhibit gallery

WHEN

Open daily from Memorial Day through Labor Day, and on weekends through September, weather permitting

WHERE

Science Museum of Minnesota
120 West Kellogg Boulevard, downtown St. Paul

DESCRIPTION

Created in partnership with the National Center for Earth-surface Dynamics, which is headquartered at the University of Minnesota, the Big Back Yard represents a new era of outdoor science learning at the Science Museum of Minnesota. The 1.75-acre Big Back Yard features:

• EarthScapes Mini Golf, a nine-hole miniature golf course that reveals the role of water in shaping landscapes. This 30,000 square-foot course gives the words "water hazard" a whole new meaning!
• Several large-scale exhibits that invite visitors to examine a 3D map of the world, play in a giant braided stream, and explore how river deltas form;
• Hands-on exhibits that reveal the properties of groundwater through the use of water from a real artesian well;
• Camera Obscura, a big walk-through pin-hole camera that projects an image of the outdoor world onto a blank wall – only it's backwards and upside-down;
• A Turtle Effigy Medicinal Garden that features medicinal plants, and a Three Sisters Garden that demonstrates the Iroquois tradition of planting beans, squash, and corn together;
• A chance to go panning for gems and fossils, using running water to separate sediment from treasure;
• A 17,000 square foot prairie maze, featuring plants, grasses, and flowering plants native to Minnesota's prairies;
• Science House, the Science Museum's award winning solar powered building, which is home to the museum's Teacher Resource Center.

VISITOR INFORMATION

Admission to the Big Back Yard is included in regular Science Museum exhibit gallery admission ($11 for adults and $8.50 for kids ages 4 to 12 and seniors). An extra fee will apply to visitors who wish to play miniature golf or pan for gemstones. For more information, call (651) 221-9444 or visit www.smm.org/bigbackyard.

MEDIA CONTACTS

Kim Ramsden/Chris Bauer, Public Relations Co-Directors, (651) 221-9423
Sarah Imholte, PR Coordinator, (651) 221-9412
Peg Roessler, Roessler Public Relations, (612) 200-8600