The Science Center of Iowa anchors the south end of Western Gateway and is the city's main rainy-day move with children. The building, opened in 2005, holds three floors of hands-on exhibits — a small planetarium, an IMAX-format theatre, a body-systems gallery, and a top-floor maker space that runs daily live demos.
Most of the exhibits skew younger; teens and adults will get more out of the planetarium and the visiting shows, which range from National Geographic photography to interactive engineering installations. The shop sells the usual museum-store fare, and the cafe is acceptable if you've miscalculated lunch. Best on a weekday morning when school groups haven't filled the place.