Tornado Alley IMAX Opens at AMNH

Tornado Alley, a new IMAX® film about the science and destructive power of tornados, opens at the American Museum of Natural History on Monday, July 4, 2011. Narrated by Bill Paxton (Twister, Titanic), this 43-minute film follows two teams on separate missions to encounter the birth of a tornado and gain new insights into these extraordinary and cruel forces of nature. "Storm Chasers" star Sean Casey and his crew attempt to capture the first up-close images of a tornado, while the scientists of VORTEX2, the largest tornado-research project ever assembled, work to understand exactly how tornados form in order to predict where they will strike and provide better warnings to those at risk.

Carrying a 92-pound IMAX® camera, director Casey and his crew race after storms in TIV-2, a 7-ton armored "tornado intercept vehicle" engineered and built by Casey to help him capture a shot of a tornado from point-blank range. Tornado Alley provides audiences with an unprecedented look at never-before-captured tornado footage on the giant screen.

Tornado Alley also tells the story of leading researchers Joshua Wurman, Karen Kosiba, and Don Burgess who, along with the scientists of VORTEX2, attempt to penetrate a tornado's inner workings and deconstruct the mystery of how, when, and where they arise. The most ambitious scientific mission of its kind, VORTEX2 included more than a hundred severe-weather researchers from all over the world, a fleet of radar trucks and mobile mesonet vehicles, and the most sophisticated weather-measuring instruments ever created-used to literally surround tornadoes and the supercell storms that form them.

Tornado Alley is a production of Giant Screen Films and Graphic Films.
Screenings of Tornado Alley will be held daily in the LeFrak Theater every hour from 10:30 am to 4:30 pm. To purchase tickets in advance, the public should call
212-769-5200 or visit www.amnh.org. A service charge may apply. (For ticket pricing, please see page 3.)

American Museum of Natural History (amnh.org)
The American Museum of Natural History is one of the world's preeminent scientific, educational, and cultural institutions. Since its founding in 1869, the Museum has advanced its global mission to explore and interpret human cultures and the natural world through a wide-reaching program of scientific research, education, and exhibitions. The Museum accomplishes this ambitious goal through its extensive facilities and resources. The institution houses 46 permanent exhibition halls, state-of-the-art research laboratories, one of the largest natural history libraries in the Western Hemisphere, and a Permanent Collection of more than 32 million specimens and cultural artifacts. The spectacular Frederick Phineas and Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space, which opened in February 2000, features the rebuilt Hayden Planetarium and striking exhibits about the nature of the universe and our planet. With a scientific staff of more than 200, the Museum supports research divisions in anthropology, paleontology, invertebrate and vertebrate zoology, and the physical sciences. With the launch of the Richard Gilder Graduate School at the Museum in 2006, the American Museum of Natural History became the first American museum with the authority to grant the Ph.D. degree. The Museum welcomed approximately 5 million on-site visitors from around the world last year and has produced exhibitions and Space Shows that can currently be seen in venues on five continents, reaching an audience of millions more. In addition, the Museum's website, amnh.org, and growing collection of apps for mobile devices extend its collections, exhibitions, and educational programs to millions beyond the Museum's walls.

At the American Museum of Natural History
The Museum offers a broad array of programs for adults, children, families, students, educators, and scientists. These range from special exhibitions to symposia, lecture series, workshops, and film festivals. Highlights include Frogs: A Chorus of Colors (May 28, 2011-January 2, 2012) an exhibition featuring more than 200 live frogs, including ten species of colorful dart-poison frogs, The World's Largest Dinosaurs (April 16, 2011-January 2, 2011), an exhibition that explores the amazing biology of a group of uniquely super-sized dinosaurs: the long-necked and long-tailed sauropods, Brain: The Inside Story (November 20, 2010-August 14, 2011), which gives visitors a new perspective and insight into the human brain using imaginative art, vivid brain scan imaging, and thrilling interactive exhibits; Body and Spirit: Tibetan Medical Paintings, an exhibition of hand-painted Tibetan medical paintings from the Museum's collection (January 25-July 17, 2011); the Hayden Planetarium Space Show, Journey to the Stars, narrated by Whoopi Goldberg; Highway of An Empire: The Great Inca Road (October 17, 2009-September 2011), an exhibition of more than 35 striking photographs featuring roads and trails built by the Inca six centuries ago; Vital Variety: A Visual Celebration of Invertebrate Biodiversity (ongoing), an exhibition of 23 large-format color photographs highlighting the immense diversity of invertebrates; a year-round calendar of engaging and educational public programs that feature dynamic encounters with living cultures and authentic science; and One Step Beyond, the popular monthly party series where guests can dance in the Museum's Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Hall of the Universe to sets by the biggest names in techno, electronica, hip-hop, and indie rock.

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

Space Show Hours
Journey to the Stars is shown every half hour Monday-Friday, 10:30 am-4:30 pm (first show on Wednesday begins at 11 am), and Saturday and Sunday, 10:30 am-5 pm.

Admission
Suggested general admission, which supports the Museum's scientific and educational endeavors and includes 46 Museum halls and the Rose Center for Earth and Space, is $16 (adults) suggested, $12 (students/seniors) suggested, $9 (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.

o Museum Supersaver includes all special exhibitions, IMAX film, and Space Show: $32 (adults), $24.50 (students/seniors), $20 (children)

o Museum Plus One includes one special exhibition, IMAX film, or Space Show: $24 (adults), $18 (students/seniors), $14 (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 should add $20 (adults), $16.50 (students/seniors), or $11 (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.

Now you can 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 through the 46 permanent exhibition halls, and features customized tours, a fossil treasure hunt, and social media links for posting to Facebook and Twitter.

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