NASA Ames Research Center (Visitor Center)

This 3D earth projection is created by combining 4 different projectors (each separated 90 degree).

Real life sized model of ISS (International Space Station). 

A peek inside the ISS model. Gives you an idea about the scale.

Exercise machines for astronauts inside ISS.

Space shuttle simulator. It is really a human interface design challenge to design all these controls. Now I think it's a miracle that someone can fly it without making any mistakes.

Space suites for Mercury and Gemini Mission in the 60s.

Look at the detail, the early space suite is really primitive. Zipper and duck tape!

NASA's recent missions. These new missions are smaller scaled and in my opinion more successful than many costly missions.

My favorite recent NASA mission, the Kepler mission. The Kepler telescope discovers so many new planets and the data it gathered truly challenges the existing model of how planets are formed. (I am seeing some future Nobel prize here.)  The mission was so successful that it even got extended. 

Thanks to the Kepler mission, now we know there are more potentially habitable planets then we originally thought. The chance of discovering alien species becomes much higher. 

The IRIS mission, a telescope to observe the Solar atmosphere. It reminds me the sci-fi movie "Sunshine". (I am glad they didn't name it "Icarus".)

Instead of building an expensive telescope in outer space like Hubble, the Sofia mission put an Infrared telescope on an airplane and fly it there. It's cheaper and easier to maintain.

An infrared selfie on screen.