- Science Museums
Cape Fear Museum of
History and Science
- Wilmington. Exhibits combine history and science; the Michael
Jordan Gallery presents the ecology of the Cape Fear area.
- Catawba Science Center
- Hickory. Web site has information on current exhibits, membership,
and the schedule of special events.
- Colburn Earth Science
Museum
- Asheville. Part of the Pack Place museum complex, Colburn has
become an important museum of earth science. School tours available.
- Discovery Place
- Charlotte. Extensive web site
includes information on the science museum itself, the Omnimax Theater
and Planetarium, and the Nature Museum.
- The Health Adventure
- Asheville. Regional health and science education center, open
daily.
- Imagination Station
- Wilson. The museum is back in its original building after surviving
a major fire in January 2000.
- Museum of Coastal
Carolina
- Ocean Isle Beach. MOCC is known for its shell collection and
Native American exhibits.
- Natural Science Center of Greensboro
- Greensboro. Site has information on exhibits and events, community
programs, and school programs. Museum includes a planetarium.
- NC Museum of Life and Science
- Durham. The museum offers programs for teachers and students;
its new Magic Wings Butterfly House is unique in the state.
- NC Museum
of Natural Sciences
- Raleigh. The state science museum's site includes an interactive
tour and information on public, school, and research programs.
- Rocky Mount Children's
Museum
- Rocky Mount. Science, mathematics, and technology education
is the goal of this regional museum.
- Schiele Museum of Natural
History
- Gastonia. The museum's web site has complete information on
exhibits and programs.
- SciWorks
- Winston-Salem. Site has complete program information. The museum
includes a planetarium and a 15-acre environmental park.
- Corporate
Science Centers
Aurora Fossil
Museum
- Aurora. Operated by PCS Corporation,
the museum displays fossils found in the giant PCS phosphate mines.
School tours available.
- Energy
Explorium
- Lake Norman. Duke Energy visitor
center at the McGuire nuclear plant. Exhibits, wildflower garden,
nature trail. School tours available.
- Science
History Museums
- NC
Maritime Museum
- Beaufort. The Museum's program combines history and science.
Site has complete information on programs and exhibits. The museum has
branch locations at Manteo
and Southport.
- NC
Transportation Museum
- Spencer. Best known for its railroad exhibits, the museum concentrates
on the technology of transportation.
- Reed
Gold Mine
- Stanfield. In Cabarrus County: the first U.S. gold mine (1799).
Exhibits and tours feature geology as well as history.
- Wright Brothers National Memorial
- Kill Devil Hills. In addition to visitor information, this
web site has extensive information on the Wrights and their accomplishments.
- Archaeological Sites
Fort Raleigh National Historic
Site
- Manteo. Well known as the site of the Lost Colony, Fort Raleigh
is also the scene of continuing archaeolgical research.
- Horne
Creek Farm
- Surry County. Research here has provided information on the
life of early Piedmont settlers.
- Somerset
Place
- Washington County. Archaeology at this plantation has revealed
much about slave communities in eastern North Carolina.
- Town
Creek Indian Mound
- Mt. Gilead. In Montgomery County: Indians of the Pee Dee culture
occupied this site about 1200 AD. Museum of archaeology and anthropology.
- Planetariums
- Edward R. Zane
Planetarium
- Greensboro. Part of the Natural Science Center of Greensboro.
The planetarium closed at the end of August 2007 and is scheduled
to reopen in February 2008 as an OmniSphere theater.
- Morehead Planetarium
and Science Center
- Chapel Hill. North Carolina's
largest planetarium
is being expanded into a science center for UNC Chapel Hill.
- Observatories
Cline Observatory
- Jamestown. Operated by Guilford Technical Community College.
Offers courses and public programs.
- Craven
E. Williams Observatory
- Boiling Springs. Located at Gardner-Webb University; hosts
school groups for observing and educational programs.
- Lucile Miller Observatory
- Maiden. Located at Maiden High School, this is an outstanding
resource for school and amateur astronomy.
- Morehead
Observatory
- Chapel Hill. Offers public observing nights and has a program
allowing students to make solar observations by remote control.
- Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute
- Rosman (Transylvania County). Non-profit institute at a former
NASA tracking facility. Portable planetarium available for school use.
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- Aquariums
North Carolina Aquariums
- Fort Fisher,
Manteo, Pine
Knoll Shores. The state's three aquariums share this site,
which includes online tours and visitor and event information. All
three facilities have recently been expanded and renovated.
- North
Carolina Estuarium
- Washington, NC. This aquarium focuses on the sounds and estuaries
of eastern North Carolina.
- Botanical Gardens and Arboreta
Airlie Gardens
- Wilmington. Now owned and managed by New Hanover County, this
botanical garden is being redeveloped and improved as an educational
institution.
- Cape Fear Botanical Garden
- Fayetteville.
Web site has general and visitor information and directions to the garden.
- Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden
- Belmont. A major botanical garden in the Charlotte
area. Site provides background on development and current programs.
- J. C. Raulston Arboretum
- Raleigh. The NC State University
Arboretum has been named for its late founder and longtime director.
Site includes a photographic tour, visitor information, calendar of
events, and a database of plantings.
- North Carolina Arboretum
- Asheville. Located in the Bent Creek Research and Demonstration
Forest of the Pisgah National Forest, the Arboretum offers a variety
of educational programs.
- North Carolina Botanical
Garden
- Chapel Hill. The Garden specializes in native North Carolina
plants and manages a large natural area.
- Reynolda Gardens
- Winston-Salem. Web site includes descriptions of the exhibits,
trails, and educational programs available.
- Sarah
P. Duke Gardens
- Durham. Site includes visitor and event information, a photographic
tour, and a calendar of bloom.
- UNC Charlotte Botanical
Gardens
- Charlotte. Visitor an event information as well as
a description of the gardens. The Van Landingham Glen showcases native
plants.
- UNC Wilmington Arboretum
- Wilmington. In addition to thematic gardens, the Arboretum
includes the Ev-Henwood Nature Preserve and Bluethenthal Wildlife Preserve.
- Zoos
North Carolina Zoo
- Asheboro. A colorful site, with visitor information, information
on education programs, a species index, and other valuable information.
- Western North Carolina Nature Center
- Asheville. The center introduces visitors to the natural wonders
of the mountain environment through a variety of indoor and outdoor
exhibits.
- Nature
Centers
- Blue
Jay Point County Park
- Wake County.
Located on Falls Lake. Environmental Education Center offers programs
for kids and adults.
- Charlotte
Nature Museum
- Located near Freedom park, this branch of Discovery Place features
plants and animals of the Charlotte area.
- Chimney Rock Park
- Chimney Rock (Rutherford County). Geology is the biggest attraction,
but plants and wildlife are also featured at this site in the Blue Ridge.
- Cradle of Forestry in
America
- Pisgah Forest. Located near Brevard in Transylvania County,
this is the location of the first forestry school and research program
in America.
- Educational
State Forests
- Chapel
Hill, Clayton,
Elizabethtown,
Hendersonville,
Lenoir,
Mt. Holly,
Purlear.
These seven state forests have environmental education centers, rangers
trained in education work, and special guided trails.
- Foothills Equestrian
Nature Center
- Tryon. Center has an extensive program of environmental education
activities, both in-school and on-site.
- Grandfather Mountain
- Linville. A privately-owned preserve jointly managed with the
Nature Conservancy; includes a nature museum, exhibits, and trails.
Comprehensive web site, with information on ecology, plants, animals.
and weather.
- Mecklenburg County Nature Centers
- Charlotte. Three of Mecklenburg County's nature preserves
have nature centers, with live animals, ecological exhibits, and
other facilities. They are Latta
Plantation, McDowell, and Reedy
Creek.
- Nags
Head Woods Ecological Preserve
- Nags Head. A Nature Conservancy site preserving a rare maritime
forest on the Outer Banks. The visitor center offers a variety of educational
programs.
- Stevens
Nature Center
- Cary. Located at Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve, the center
has exhibits, classroom space, and public programs.
- Weymouth
Woods Sandhills Nature Preserve
- Southern Pines. Visitor center houses a natural history museum
and provides programs for the public and school groups.
Wildlife
Conservation Centers
Cape
Fear Serpentarium- Wilmington. This new, privately-owned facility houses snakes
and other reptiles from around the world.
- Carnivore Preservation Trust
- Pittsboro. CPT shelters more than 200 animals of 16 endangered
species. Not a zoo, but it offers in-school programs and guided tours
for school groups.
- Carolina Raptor
Center
- Charlotte. The Center cares for injured birds of prey. It's
open to the public and to school groups. The site includes a featured
species as well as information on what to do if you find an injured
bird.
- Duke Lemur
Center
- Durham. This center, open to school tours, promotes the conservation
of lemurs, tarsiers, and other prosimians (rare and endangered primates).
The site has a wonderful collection of photos and information.
- Edenton National Fish Hatchery
- Edenton. The hatchery has a small aquarium, wetland trails
and other educational facilities; tours offered for school groups
- NC
Wildlife Education Centers
- Pisgah
Forest, Raleigh,
and Corolla.
Operated by the NC Wildlife Commission. A third center is under
development in Raleigh.
- Sea Turtle Rescue and
Rehabilitation Center
- Topsail Island. The center assists turtles found injured or
ill along the North Carolina coast.
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UNC Chapel Hill Center for Mathematics and Science Education