SURF hosts grand opening of new H2O Workshop at the Washington Pavilion

There is something about moving water that brings out the kid in us all. This was evident at the grand opening of the new H2O Workshop at the Kirby Science Discovery Center inside the Washington Pavilion in Sioux Falls. The free admission day, sponsored by the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF), brought nearly 1,000 people to check out the new exhibit. Among the visitors was Lisa Bahe, a science teacher at Brookings High School, who was quite impressed with the exhibit.

“Water for some reason is always a big draw for kids, and this is something kids will have fun with for a long time. Watching them doing the hands-on activities you can see there is a lot of learning happening here while they have fun. I as an adult had fun too,” said Bahe.

The Washington Pavilion is one of South Dakota’s premier science education and outreach centers. The organization saw more than 130,000 visitors last year. So, when the Pavilion reached out to SURF about sponsorship for a new science-based interactive water exhibit, Mike Headley, knew it would be a perfect fit.

“SURF’s mission is to advance world-leading underground science and inspire learning across generations. We’re proud to partner with the Kirby Science Discovery Center to advance our common science education mission and to share SURF’s rich story as America’s underground science lab across the state,” said Headley, the Executive Director of the South Dakota Science and Technology Authority (SDSTA) and Laboratory Director of SURF.

Water management is a critical part of maintaining the underground laboratory infrastructure at SURF. Without a carefully maintained network of continuously operating pumps, America’s Deepest underground lab would slowly fill with water. 

“We treat the water that comes out of the mine to be cleaner than the natural waters that are nearby,” said Casey Peterson Board Chair of the South Dakota Science and Technology Authority which manages SURF. “When we started the lab space was 300 feet underwater. This exhibit tells the story of how we keep the lab dry.” 

The ongoing experiments at SURF, have lifespans measured in decades. To ensure longevity, SURF will need a pipeline of future scientists and engineers to maintain the site and move the science forward. The kids of today are the professionals of tomorrow and a big part of the effort to engage young people at the Kirby Science Discovery Center is to make learning fun. 

“If you’re having a tough day at work, walk on over, and spend ten minutes here and watch the kids play. They love it,” said Darrin Smith President and CEO of Washington Pavilion Management, Inc. during the ribbon cutting for the new H2O workshop exhibit on Sept. 21. “But it’s not just about having a great experience and fun, it’s also a tremendous learning opportunity here.”

The H20 Workshop includes interactive fog pipes, rain clouds, aqueducts, river channels, squirt guns, whirlpools, and fountains help children learn about the phases of water. Colorful wall panels follow the water cycle at SURF and help visitors understand how the experiments located nearly a mile underground are kept dry. SURF will continue to be a part of the future educational programming around the exhibit in the coming years. 

“We knew SURF was the perfect partner to take this exhibit to the next level. And we are really looking forward to the programming we can put into place with SURF,” Smith said.

The new H2O Workshop exhibit was made possible thanks to funding from a $1.2 million donation to the Kirby Science Discovery Center from the estate of Patricia Knutson. SURF’s sponsorship of the exhibit and free admission day is valued at $80,000 over five years. But impact of this exhibit is far beyond this timeframe.

“This is going to be in place and putting smiles on kid’s faces for years and years to come,” Smith said.

For more information about the H2O Workshop, visit WashingtonPavilion.org/H2O.

To learn more about SURF, visit www.sanfordlab.org.