Science Center

Current Hours. Please see Science Center Hours and Admissions for seasonal hours and holiday closures.

Science Center

Monday9:30 AM — 5:30 PM
Tuesday – WednesdayClosed
Thursday – Sunday9:30 AM — 5:30 PM

Starlight Café See menu for hours of availability.

Monday11:00 AM — 5:30 PM
Tuesday – WednesdayClosed
Thursday – Sunday11:00 AM — 5:30 PM

Tours are currently offered at 10:00, 12:00, 2:00, and 4:00 as availability allows every day the Science Center is open. Tickets may be purchased in advance at our online shop or in the gift shop when you arrive. Additional tours may be added during summer hours as capacity allows.

So Much To Do!

The Green Bank Science Center offers regular tours and presentations and features the Catching the Wave Exhibit Hall, the Galaxy Gift Shop, and the Starlight Café. We recommend planning 2 hours for a full visit.

Admission

Science Center Admission is free! Fees are charged for public tours and some programs.

Our masking guidelines are determined by local levels of COVID-19. Signage at our entrance will let you know whether masking is required. We do have masks available if you do not have your own.

Regular Offerings

Explore the fascinating world of radio astronomy!  The tour highlights groundbreaking instruments and discoveries from the 1930s to today and offers a close-up view of the Green Bank Telescope, the world’s largest fully-steerable telescope!

The tour begins in the Science Center with a dynamic presentation and introductory video. Then we climb aboard our radio-quiet bus for a behind-the-gates tour of the observatory grounds and an up-close view of our telescopes. This family-friendly tour is our most popular offering.

  • $10/person, various discounts apply. See Hours and Admissions for more details.
  • Tours are offered at regular intervals every day the Science Center is open as availability allows. Call 304-456-2150 or visit our online store for available times: shop.greenbankobservatory.org
  • You may purchase tickets online in advance or onsite as availability allows. 
Purchase Tickets

What IS radio astronomy? What can it teach us about the Universe?  Explore these and other questions with our interactive exhibits and historical displays.

The Galaxy Gift Shop offers apparel, collectibles, and the best variety of educational toys around. Indulge your inner scientist! Educators enjoy a 10% discount in person at the gift shop.

Can’t make it for a visit? Shop from home at our online store!

Online Shop

Dine at our award-winning Starlight Café and enjoy the scenic view! Our menu includes a selection of freshly prepared foods and snacks with generous portions and affordable prices. Café-style seating is available indoors in the atrium or at picnic tables on our outdoor patio.

Order onsite or call ahead to place your takeout order – 304-456-2361. Last hot food orders are taken a half-hour before close.

Café Menu

Take a self guided tour or hike or bike one of our many trails. The grounds are open to the public every day from dawn to dusk.

You may also take a self-guided walking tour of the grounds using this map. We do ask that you leave all electronic devices in your car, so please print the map before you come, or pick up a copy outside the entrance of the Science Center. A walk to the Green Bank Telescope is 1.5 miles one way, following our scale model of our solar system (that’s 3 miles round trip!)

Behind-the-Scenes Tours

Celebrate Green Bank’s historic role in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence with a rare opportunity to see inside our historic telescopes and speak with one of our radio astronomers in person!  We begin where it all started, in the control room of the 85-foot telescope used by Frank Drake in the original search, Project Ozma. From there, enjoy access to the 140-foot telescope that hosted Jill Tarter’s Project Phoenix, then take a stroll around the GBT for a close-up view of the world’s largest fully-steerable radio telescope. The tour concludes in the historic Drake Lounge for a conversation with a staff astronomer about the current status and future goals of SETI projects.

If you’ve ever wanted to take a peek inside our historic telescopes or speak with one of our radio astronomers, then this is THE opportunity of a lifetime!

Due to high demand and limited capacity, tours do usually sell out; if you are traveling with a group, we recommend purchasing all tickets together.

  • Recommended for ages 12 and up.
  • Tours are offered select Fridays from April – September. Visit our online shop to see available times and purchase tickets.
  • A clearance check is required.  Submit your Visitor Registration Form at least 72 hours in advance to allow ample time for your clearance to come through. https://info.nrao.edu/oas/dpscompliance
    • Name of AUI/NRAO/GBO Host: Angela Damery
    • Purpose of Visit: SETI/High Tech Tour 
    • Location – AUI/NRAO/GBO Facility: Choose all  3 Green Bank, WV locations
  • You will be required to turn off your phone and all electronics while touring most of the Observatory grounds. Digital cameras are not allowed near the telescopes. You may bring a film camera to capture your experiences.

Accessibility Note: access to some of the historical sites visited on this tour does require the use of stairs.  Accommodations can be made for parts of the tour with advance notice.  Please call 304-456-2150 or email us at gro.y1733057328rotav1733057328resbo1733057328bg@ti1733057328siv1733057328 at least a week in advance of your tour if you need to request an accommodation.   

In the event of severe weather conditions, the Green Bank Observatory site and Science Center could close. We will make every attempt to notify ticket holders about closures. Feel free to call us at 304-456-2150 before departing on your trip to our site if you have any concerns. 

Purchase Tickets

Join an Observatory engineer for an in-depth conversation as they deconstruct a radio telescope receiver and give you a behind-the-scenes peek inside our electronics lab and the GBT control room. Learn about the engineering that makes the GBT one of the most sensitive and versatile single-dish radio telescopes in the world! 

This tour does tend to sell out most of the year; if you are traveling with a group, we recommend purchasing all tickets together.

  • Recommended for ages 16 and up.
  • No photography of any kind is permitted inside the Jansky Laboratory.
  • Tours are scheduled on the 2nd Thursday of every month. Tours begin at 3:30 PM and end at approximately 5 PM; tour length varies depending on the engineer leading the tour and the size of the group.
  • A clearance check is required.  Submit your Visitor Registration Form at least 72 hours in advance to allow ample time for your clearance to come through. https://info.nrao.edu/oas/dpscompliance
    • Name of AUI/NRAO/GBO Host: Angela Damery
    • Purpose of Visit: SETI/High Tech Tour 
    • Location – AUI/NRAO/GBO Facility: Choose all  3 Green Bank, WV locations

Purchase Tickets

Interested in seeing the telescopes as well?  Come early and add a Guided Bus Tour to your itinerary!  A 2 PM tour will get you back to the Science Center in time for the 3:30 High Tech tour.  Tickets are available in our Online Shop about a month in advance.

Family Programs

Take advantage of West Virginia’s dark skies! If weather allows, Green Bank Observatory staff will treat you to views of the night sky through optical telescopes. Observing lasts for about two hours, but please arrive within the first hour. In the event of inclement weather, we will have indoor activities available for the first hour.

  • Parties are scheduled monthly and start approximately a half hour after sunset. Keep an eye on our events calendar and Facebook page for dates and times; weather updates will be posted on Facebook.
  • Please sign in at the front desk in the Science Center when you arrive.

Get your family started in science! Kids will love our fun-filled hands-on science experiments! 

  • Ages 4-9
  • Select Saturdays during the school year only. Keep an eye on our events calendar for dates.
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We currently are not able to offer public StarLab programs. We hope to bring them back in the fall – please keep an eye out for dates!

Crawl into our planetarium balloon for an indoor tour or the night sky!

  • Select Sundays. Keep an eye on our events calendar for dates.
  • Space is limited. Reservations recommended.

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Top: Go behind the gates on a Guided Bus Tour!
Above: Catching the Wave in our exhibit hall.

Education Programs and Field Trips

We create field trip experiences that meet both the national Next Generation Science Standards as well as state-based science learning goals. We also offer Scout badge weekends and a variety of research opportunities for K-12 and College students. Visit our Education pages for more detailed information.

Visit the VLA in New Mexico

Traveling a bit further west than West Virginia? If you find yourself in New Mexico, please visit our sister site, the Very Large Array (VLA) Radio Telescope. The VLA is a two-hour drive from Albuquerque, 50 miles west of Socorro, New Mexico.

Learn more on their website!