NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

My husband loves visiting this place. You get to talk to brilliant individuals who work for NASA. It’s a great place to take children. The staff are just amazing people. They take time off in the weekend to come and speak to all these people who want to learn. It was crowded and hot, but they were engaged and so friendly. Science is cool!

Visited 10÷11÷15.
This place is close to home. Never been here before. Had to come to the open house because my daughter wanted to. Glad I did. Impressive campus. Impressive work. Staff friendly and knowledgeable.
Got here before opening (9am) thank goodness because at 1115, they were turning cars and people away! Car line LONG! Lines at the different exhibits LONG but went faster than Disneyland. Fairly organized. Lots of interesting stuff to look at if you like this sort of stuff.

Once a year the JPL opens house to the public. Although the place opens at 9. Get here at 7. You’ll be waiting in line but it’s worth it.
You get to learn so much through videos, talks, posters and more. There are interactive exhibits which makes Science accessible to kids and those who generally aren’t as interested.
Today is October 11^th, it’s 90 degrees and hundreds upon hundreds of people are waiting in lines outside just to see the labs.
It’s the first time people have been allowed into many of the rooms, so the experience is unique.
Parking is in lots and there is lots!
Bring water, food trucks are abundant, but you need cash.
Good for people of all ages.

Space. The final frontier. Formerly the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, it’s now the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Part of NASA is this division, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. It’s the federal government but they work closely with the California Institute of Technology (aka CalTech). Once a year here, the facility has an open house for visitors where they set out materials, equipment, videos, actual rocket scientists and films.
More than 20,000 people come here on the weekend to see the stuff that gets us into space and drives the stuff that’s already in space. Voyager? JPL’s project. The Mars rovers? JPL projects. Cassini? JPL. Yep, all of those things came from smart people who worked here at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
That weekend of open house was this weekend, October 10 and 11. It is a very well orchestrated invasion of people into what is otherwise a secure government installation. It’s not designed for this sort of crowd, but they figure it out. Security, traffic direction, port-​a-​potties and food vendors abound.
You won’t have to go far to find a place to buy a snack and drink (or bring your own), lines for some of the bathrooms can get long.
GET HERE EARLY. It opens at 9:00 AM. I suggest that you be parking your car just after 8:00 AM. Have a plan of what you want to see and see it. And plan to leave early because after about 11:00 AM, the waits to see some of the facilities get over an hour long. And nobody got time fo dat. At that point, it’s like Disneyland but without a fast pass. That’s when I left. You’ll be pointed out the back entrance that climbs a hill and through a residential neighborhood so plan accordingly.
Super interesting, tons of fun to see this stuff. Absolutely a once in a lifetime experience.