The American Museum of Natural History Presents New Events in February - Asteroids, Sleepovers & More!

AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY FEBRUARY 2014 PUBLIC PROGRAMS

Asteroids: Earth's Nearest Neighbors with Amy Mainzer

Monday, February 3, at 7:30 pm

Hayden Planetarium

Space Theater

$15 ($13.50 students, seniors)

$12 for Members

Asteroids have interacted with Earth in the past and are certain to do so in the future. In this talk, we will explore the origins and evolution of the smallest bodies in our solar system as well as what has recently been learned about their orbital and physical properties. Recent advances in ground- and space-based astronomy have yielded new estimates of their numbers, orbits, sizes, and compositions. Systems to discover, track, characterize, and predict potential impacts from Earth's nearest neighbors will be discussed.

Support for Hayden Planetarium Programs is provided by the Schaffner Family.

SciCafe: Reconnaissance of Other Solar Systems

Wednesday, February 5

Doors open at 6:30 pm
Program begins at 7 pm
Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis
Free with cash bar
21+ with ID
Enter at 77th Street
An advanced telescopic imaging system that started taking data this year is the first of its kind capable of not only spotting planets orbiting other stars, but also analyzing the chemistry of their atmospheres. The collaborative set of high-tech instrumentation and software, called Project 1640, is now operating on the Hale telescope at the Palomar Observatory in California after more than six years of development. Join Curator and Chair of the Astrophysics Department Ben R. Oppenheimer, as he discusses the first remote reconnaissance of another solar system.

The SciCafe Series is proudly sponsored by Judy and Josh Weston.

A Night at the Museum Sleepover

Friday, February 7 (Boy Scout Night)

Saturday, February (Girl Scout Night)
$125 per person
Visit amnh.org/sleepovers for available dates and further details including pricing for Scout nights.
Break out your sleeping bags and experience the Museum like never before. During A Night at the Museum, the Museum's popular sleepover program, guests will the Spitzer Hall of Human Origins, Cullman Hall of the Universe, and the Hall of Saurischian Dinosaurs, where they will find T. rex. Then, participants will settle down beneath the 94-foot-long blue whale in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life, around the African elephants in the Akeley Hall of African Mammals, or at the base of a volcano in the Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth. This unique after-hours program will thrill kids ages 6 to 13 and their caregivers.

Give Your Voice: Honor Black History

Saturday, February 8, from noon to 5 pm

Free for Members or with Museum Admission
Back in 1926 when Dr. Carter G. Woodson organized a weeklong celebration of African-American contributions to the history of the United States, he probably never envisioned just how his idea would blossom. Today, Americans of all ethnicities recognize the month of February as a time to honor the bountiful legacy of Black history. Jumpstarting the Museum's annual Black History celebration is the ever-popular mancala game-playing sessions in the Hall of African Peoples with mancala scholar Alex de Voogt, assistant curator, Division of Anthropology. Hosted by television journalist and fashion model Gail O'Neill, the Museum's celebration features brilliant artists whose unique voices are helping to define some of this country's most dynamic cultural expressions: Camille A. Brown & Dancers; composer-pianist Samora Abayomi Pinderhughes; the award-winning Young People's Chorus of New York City withFrancisco J. Núñez, Artistic Director/Founder, The New Orleans Swamp Donkeys Traditional Jass Band; and returning favorites NEA Jazz Master Delfeayo Marsalis with special guest Darryl "DMC" McDan­iels of the multi-platinum hip-hop group Run-DMC.

Support for Global Weekends is provided, in part, by the Sidney, Milton and Leoma Simon Foundation, the May and Samuel Rudin Family Foundation, Inc., the family of Frederick H. Leonhardt, and the Weinig Foundation.

Give Your Voice: Honor Black History is co-presented by Community Works and New Heritage Theatre Group.

Taste the Museum: The History of Chocolate

Tuesday, February 11, at 7:30 pm
Take an after-hours culinary journey through the Museum, tracing chocolate back to its origins in 1900 BC Mesoamerica. Learn about the culinary history of chocolate, complete with tastings of chocolates, cooking techniques, and more, with inspiration from the Museum's Hall of Mexico and Central America. Stations will include: Chocolate related Mayan and Aztec artifacts from the Museum's Education Collection, a Mast Brothers Q&A area with tastings, a hands-on metate station where visitors can grind cocoa beans, and hot chocolate samples including alcohol, traditional, and "current". Chocolate tastings provided by Mast Brothers Chocolate.

Romance Under the Stars

Thursday, February 14, at 6:00 pm and 9:30 pm

$85(includes 1.5 hours of open bar and appetizers)

Celebrate the holiday with a unique NYC experience only at the Hayden Planetarium! Join us for a cocktail hour, complete with open bar, champagne, chocolate-covered strawberries, and hors d'oeuvres, along with the music of the Josh Rutner Quartet. Then, join one of our astronomers in the Planetarium for a view of the night sky. Sit back, hold hands, and enjoy some of the greatest romance stories of all time.

Things That Go Bang in the Universe

Tuesday, February 25, at 6:30 pm

Hayden Planetarium

Space Theater

$15 ($13.50 students, seniors)

$12 for Members

Join astrophysicist Jackie Faherty for an exploration of things that go bang in the universe. Space may be generally empty, but where there is matter things can get violently explosive, from supernovae explosions to the powerful event that led to the start of everything. Faherty will (safely) guide you around our explosive universe using the 3D Digital Universe Atlas, the most comprehensive of its kind.

Support for Hayden Planetarium Programs is provided by the Schaffner Family.

Museum Info

Hours

The Museum is open daily, 10 am-5:45 pm. The Museum is closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Admission

Museum admission is free to all New York City school and camp groups.

Suggested general admission, which supports the Museum's scientific and educational endeavors and offers access to the Museum's 46 halls including the Rose Center for Earth and Space, is $22 (adults) suggested, $17 (students/seniors) suggested, $12.50 (children) suggested. All prices are subject to change.

The Museum offers discounted combination ticket prices that include suggested general admission plus special exhibitions, IMAX films, and Space Shows.

• Museum Plus One includes one special exhibition, IMAX film, or Space Show: $27 (adults), $22 (students/seniors), $16 (children)

• Museum Supersaver includes all special exhibitions, IMAX film, and Space Show: $35 (adults), $28 (students/seniors), $22 (children)

Visitors who wish to pay less than the suggested Museum admission and also purchase a ticket to attend a special exhibition, IMAX film, or Space Show may do so on-site at the Museum. To the amount they wish to pay for general admission, they add $25 (adults), $20.50 (students/seniors), or $13.50 (children) for a Space Show, special exhibition, or IMAX film.

Public Information

For additional information, the public may call 212-769-5100 or visit the Museum's website at amnh.org.

Prepare for your Museum visit by downloading the new American Museum of Natural History Explorer App, a groundbreaking enhanced navigation tool available for free from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.iTunes.com/appstore/. The Explorer pinpoints your location within the Museum and offers turn-by-turn directions and customized tours, a fossil treasure hunt, and social media links for posting to Facebook and Twitter.

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