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apollonaut. Built by People Who've Been

Journal / History

History, science & the bay

A museum of curiosity.
A pier on the bay.

The story of the Exploratorium, from a physicist’s idea in the Palace of Fine Arts to a museum of science, art and perception on Pier 15.

The long pier sheds of Piers 15 and 17 behind an Exploratorium sign on the waterfront
The Exploratorium on Pier 15, on San Francisco’s Embarcadero.

Opening the doors in 1969

The physicist and educator Frank Oppenheimer founded the Exploratorium in 1969. It opened in late August that year inside the Palace of Fine Arts, with exhibits made for visitors to take part in.

Machines and workbenches in the museum’s exhibit development workshop
The white arched front of Pier 15 seen across the Embarcadero, beneath an American flag

A new home on the waterfront

In April 2013 the museum moved to Piers 15 and 17 on the Embarcadero, two piers built in 1912 and 1931, under a long lease from the Port of San Francisco. The architects EHDD adapted the piers, and the Bay Observatory is the only new building.

Built over the bay

Pier 15 reaches more than 800 feet into San Francisco Bay. The museum has 330,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor exhibit space and 1.5 acres of open public space, and it received LEED Platinum certification in January 2014, with 5,874 solar panels on its roof.

The bay and the city skyline, with the Transamerica Pyramid, seen from beside the Exploratorium

Continue exploring

The long pier sheds of Piers 15 and 17 behind an Exploratorium sign on the waterfrontPier 15A museum on the water.A glowing panel of photosynthetic bacteria in shades of orange and green, shown as an exhibitWhat to see at the Exploratorium650+ hands-on exhibits.Plan your visit

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