LOCAL

Changes underway at NM Museum of Space History

Tara Melton
Alamogordo Daily News
First Street Tile and Carpet employee works Wednesday afternoon to lay glue on top of the New Mexico Museum of Space History’s existing tile in order to install the museum’s new carpet tiles.

ALAMOGORDO —The New Mexico Museum of Space History is offering half price admission until Sept. 1 while new flooring is being installed at the facility.

"We started updating the look of the museum a few years ago and this is our next step forward," said Museum Executive Director Chris Orwoll. "We're replacing 41-year-old tile and enclosing some of the galleries to prevent damage to artifacts that occur from the natural sunlight."

The museum worked with Home Service Contractors and First Street Carpet and Tile to come up with a work schedule that allows the museum to remain open to visitors while renovations are taking place. 

Crews began Monday, moving exhibit cases and installing new carpet tiles on top of the museum's original tile. Once crews progress to the ground floor of the museum, where the reception area and gift shop are located, there is a possibility the museum may have to adjust their business hours.

Museum staff and a security team work to reinstall the moon rock exhibit on the fourth floor after the new carpet was installed. The moon rock was brought back to Earth during the Apollo 17 mission by New Mexico Astronaut Harrison Schmitt.  .

Orwoll said there's a couple reasons behind replacing the tiles with carpeting, including maintenance and aesthetic. 

"Waxing and mopping the tile constantly is very time-consuming," Orwoll said. "We also want the galleries to have a spacier feel to them, pun intended, that's why we've shifted over to black ceilings and we're moving away from the generic light and going to track lighting. We've painted the walls different colors and we're enclosing the galleries so we can control the environment to make it a more dramatic experience for the guests."

The new carpeting is also safer, especially on the ramps leading guests down the levels of the museum. 

Orwoll said there's a 15 year timeline of changes planned for the museum and they're only about three years into it. 

"This is just another major step for us, ahead of schedule," Orwoll said. "I didn't think we were going to be able to do this for another three years but we're able to do it now." 

The museum also plans to install an outdoor playground next to the Little Joe II rocket in the John P. Stapp Air & Space Park soon. The playground project is paid for by a large PNM grant and the museum's foundation. 

The New Mexico Museum of Space History is planning to install a new playground next to the Little Joe II rocket in the John P. Stapp Air & Space Park soon.

"There's going to be two climbing structures, one a regular climbing structure like you see at playgrounds all over town and one is a rocket," Orwoll said. "There will also be a bright yellow cover over one of the structures to provide shade. It'll be a nice addition for us because one of our key things is trying to draw the local community up here, that's been a hard thing for us to do."

Eventually, the museum plans to install more picnic benches and outdoor shade structures. 

Continuing with renovations, the museum's new planetary dome and two new lighting systems are scheduled to be installed in January and February.

More:New laser projection system unveiled at Space Museum theater

“Although our guests will be temporarily inconvenienced by the flooring work, we are very pleased that progress continues to be made in upgrades to our museum, exhibits and grounds," Orwoll said. "It’s this kind of work that resulted in our visitation increases over the past few years and will continue to make a positive impact on our guests."

For more information on the New Mexico Museum of Space History, call 437-2840 or 877-333-6589 or visit their website at www.nmspacemuseum.org.