It took exactly nine minutes and 47 seconds this morning for the Saint Louis Science Center to deflate its Exploradome, the air-supported structure that first opened in 1997.
In 2011, the Science Center opened Boeing Hall, the special exhibition and event facility to replace the aging Exploradome, which the center says lasted sixteen years -- twice as long as originally planned.
And it took apparently just ten minutes to deflate the whole thing. But who has ten minutes to spare, these days! Check out below a fun time-lapse video posted today.
We recommend you play this background music as you watch the sped-up deflation.
And the interior view:
The Exploradome hosted 33 special exhibitions attracting more than 2.4 million paying visitors, the center says, which is why it took steps to create a permanent exhibition space.
The Exploradome was deflated and will be cleared away today to make room for the "largest exhibit expansion in the history of the Saint Louis Science Center," with a transformation offering both indoor and outdoor experiences. More details here.
And for fun, a look at its inflation way back when.
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