Museum News

Austin science museum and planetarium reopens with 2 new exhibits

Texas Museum of Science and Technology Planetarium

The planetarium at the Texas Museum of Science and Technology reopens September 22, along with two new exhibits.

Texas Museum of Science and Technology/Facebook

The Texas Museum of Science and Technology (TXMoST) celebrates its grand reopening in Cedar Park this week with a full lineup of events — and two new exhibitions. Festivities began with a special gala on Thursday, September 21, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday, September 22.

“I am proud to have a state-of-the-art museum like TXMoST in Cedar Park,” says Cedar Park Mayor Matt Powell. “The museum and its important exhibitions will aid in the continued education of science, technology, and discovery in our community here in Cedar Park and across Texas.”

Austin’s first science museum, planetarium, and technology center, the mission of TXMoST is “to engage the scientist in all of us by igniting a spirit of inquiry.” For almost 13 years, TXMoST was known as the Austin Planetarium, traveling around the Central Texas area with a mobile planetarium. In March 2015, the museum moved to an interim facility in Cedar Park, where it acquired a state-of-the-art planetarium and built an interactive "Timewalk" exhibition, illustrating the history of life from the Precambrian era to today.

“We could not be more excited to reopen the museum after our extensive remodel,” says Torvald Hessel, TXMoST founder and chief strategy officer. “The launch of our newest exhibitions and renovated interior will engage curious minds of all ages from around the state.”

Among the new exhibits is the Drug Enforcement Administration’s "Drugs: Cost and Consequences," an interactive exploration of the effects of drugs on both individuals and society. The display is appropriate for guests of middle school age and above, and it will be open daily through June 20, 2018.

Also on display are replicas of Leonardo da Vinci’s "Machines in Motion," which provides visitors of all ages the chance to explore the concepts and ideas of the great Italian artist. The show presents 40 different machines built by a group of scientists and skilled craftsmen in collaboration with the Leonardo da Vinci Museum in Florence.

The museum’s original dinosaur and fossil exhibit, "Timewalk," also has been revamped and expanded for the reopening. Regular hours are Monday through Thursday, 10 am to 6 pm; Friday and Saturday 10 am to 9 pm; Sunday 11 am to 6 pm.

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Self-driving Roller Coaster

More self-driving cars expected to roll out in Austin for 2025

Photo courtesy of Waymo via KVUE

Various brands offering self-driving cars are on-and-off in Austin.

Expect to see more self-driving rideshare vehicles, also known as robotaxis, on Austin roads next year.

Robotaxi company Waymo, which you may have already seen on Austin's roads, is partnering with Uber. At some point next year, customers will be able to use the Uber app to call a self-driving ride.

Austin-based company Avride is in the testing phase and plans to roll out its robotaxis next year.

Currently, Volkswagen ADMT and Amazon's Zoox are in the testing phase in Austin, while Hyundai's Motional is in the mapping phase.

Last year, robotaxi company Cruise paused operations in Austin after the California Department of Motor Vehicles revoked the company's permits to operate driverless vehicles in the state. And last week, General Motors said it would no longer fund the company because of the time and resources needed.

This way of getting around has come with its safety concerns and issues. The city is tracking those concerns. According to the Transportation Department, the problems span from blocking the roads and parking in front of people's homes for weeks with lights beaming through their windows, to actual wrecks.

Since July 2023, robotaxis have been involved in 75 incidents. Only 21 of those incidents happened in 2024. It's important to note that Cruise has not been operating in Austin this year.

Since July 2023, driverless rideshare vehicles have been involved in 22 near collisions, eight collisions and seven instances where driverless taxis ignored directions from the Austin Police Department (APD).

According to the data, at least four of those Austin police incidents happened in recent months. The issues varied from driving through police checkpoints, to malfunctioning and getting stuck at an APD road closure near pedestrians, causing safety concerns.

A Waymo spokesperson said their vehicles have gesture recognition capabilities, which they've been training APD officers on using.

As the report shows, sometimes it does not work and Waymo said it is working to improve that. The spokesperson said that as of just last week, Waymo's First Responder Program has been independently verified by TÜV SÜD, making Waymo the first autonomous vehicle (AV) company to receive third-party validation for our emergency response protocols. They also said the data to date indicates the Waymo Driver is already reducing traffic injuries and fatalities in the places where the company currently operates.

Read the full story and watch the video at KVUE.com.

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