The Maryland Science Center and Constellation Celebrate Grand Opening of Power Up! Exhibit

BALTIMORE, March 14, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Maryland Science Center and Constellation today celebrated the opening of the center's newest permanent exhibit, Power Up!. The $1.8 million exhibit, sponsored by Constellation and parent company Exelon, gives visitors an interactive look at the science of electricity.  The 4,000-square-foot, multi-lingual (English, Spanish and Braille) exhibit features more than 12 interactive stations that allow visitors to participate in the process of generating, measuring, monitoring and distributing electricity. Power Up! is the first major permanent to exhibit to open at the Maryland Science Center in four years.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held today at the Maryland Science Center to commemorate the exhibit's opening. The event included representatives from the Maryland Science Center and Constellation, Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Torrey Smith, and 20 first-grade students from Federal Hill Prep. The students are among 1,700 Baltimore-area students who will receive bus transportation to the Maryland Science Center this year through Constellation's Sacks for Science program with the Baltimore Ravens.

"The Maryland Science Center is very excited to be working with Constellation to bring such a comprehensive and educational exhibit to our visitors," said Maryland Science Center president and CEO Van Reiner. "Power Up! is a great opportunity for us to engage and educate visitors about a resource that many of us take for granted every day."

"Constellation is honored to sponsor this new energy exhibit that will provide a fun and interactive learning experience for Maryland-area youth," said Mark Huston, president - Constellation Retail, and Maryland Science Center board member trustee. "Inspiring young people to learn more about science and technology is essential to developing new energy solutions for a brighter, more sustainable future."

In addition to the science of electricity generation, Power Up! allows visitors to explore renewable energy resources, energy conservation and energy career choices. Exhibit activities include: powering household items at a "human-generator" station, simulating how to manage Baltimore's electricity load during times of peak use, harnessing the power of hydro-electricity and producing the energy needed to power fluorescent, LED and incandescent light bulbs. Power Up! challenges visitors to build circuits, wire the grid from power plant to home outlet and explore cutting-edge fuels.

During its development, Power Up! was reviewed by a content advisory panel made up of educators, scientists, researchers and engineers who examined the exhibit's content and experiential components over 18 months to ensure an optimal educational and interactive experience. Power Up! was designed by Hands On! Inc., located in St. Petersburg, Fla., a leader in creating experiential exhibits for science centers and museums across the country.

Power Up! is located on the third floor of the Maryland Science Center. All exhibit activities are free with paid admission to the Maryland Science Center. For dates of specific activities, more information and ticket prices, visit www.marylandsciencecenter.org or call the 24-hour information line at 410-685-5225.

About the Maryland Science Center
Named one of Parents Magazine's Top 10 Science Centers in America, the Maryland Science Center in Baltimore makes science understandable and fun for more than 500,000 visitors a year. The Maryland Science Center inspires, fascinates, motivates and engages children and adults with dozens of interactive exhibits, traveling exhibitions, original presentations in the world-famous Davis Planetarium, larger-than-life movies in the five-story St. John Properties IMAX Theater, and hundreds of hands-on programs delivered throughout the state each year.  For more information, visit www.marylandsciencecenter.org.

About Constellation
The Constellation family of retail electricity and natural gas suppliers (www.constellation.com), are subsidiaries of Exelon Corp., and are leading competitive retail suppliers of power, natural gas and energy products and services for homes and businesses across the continental United States. Constellation's retail businesses serve more than 100,000 business and public sector customers, including more than two-thirds of the Fortune 100, and nearly one million residential customers.

Exelon Corporation (NYSE: EXC) is the nation's leading competitive energy provider, with 2013 revenues of approximately $24.9 billion. Headquartered in Chicago, Exelon has operations and business activities in 47 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. Exelon is one of the largest competitive U.S. power generators, with approximately 35,000 megawatts of owned capacity comprising one of the nation's cleanest and lowest-cost power generation fleets. The company's Constellation business unit provides energy products and services to approximately 100,000 business and public sector customers and approximately 1 million residential customers. Exelon's utilities deliver electricity and natural gas to more than 6.6 million customers in central Maryland (BGE), northern Illinois (ComEd) and southeastern Pennsylvania (PECO).

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140314/FL83946 

SOURCE Maryland Science Center