California awarded MOXI museum $1 million to replace their current water exhibit with one themed around the Santa Barbara watershed. 

The newly envisioned water feature at MOXI, The Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation will showcase how water moves from the Santa Ynez Mountains all the way to creeks, urban areas and channels into wetlands before flowing into the Pacific Ocean.

The interactive exhibit will open in 2027 at the museum on 125 State St., according to Robin Gose, CEO and president of the museum. It will replace the water exhibit that has been on the roof of the museum since opening day. 

The designs were still being finalized as of Wednesday.

“We are excited to reimagine a very popular exhibit at the museum,” Gose said.

Museum-goers will be able to build dams, create water vortexes, make it rain, and witness water spurts to demonstrate laminar flow, the phenomenon where fluid particles move in parallel without mixing, according to Gose. 

“There will be lots of tried and true interactive water table features,” she said.

The current exhibition, Whitewater, showcases water dynamics with pump and pull features, and an Archimedes screw. 

The money comes from Proposition 4, a state bond that includes $20 million in grants geared toward nonprofits, museums, research facilities, zoos, and geological heritage sites, among others promoting climate, biodiversity and cultural literacy. 

“It’s incredibly humbling to receive this award from the state,” Gose said.

Assemblyman Gregg Hart, D- Santa Barbara, supported Senate Bill 105, a budget bill, which allocated Proposition 4 funds.

“I was pleased to join my colleagues in approving the State of California’s $1 million grant to MOXI. Having supported the museum’s development during my time on the City Council, it’s incredibly rewarding to see the powerful impact the museum and its programs continue to have on youth and families across our region,” Hart said in a statement. “I’m confident that the new interactive water exhibit will spark curiosity and inspire the next generation of scientists and environmental stewards.”

Gose said she already wanted to remake the water exhibit feature, and Proposition 4 funding offered an opportunity to remake it with ties to the local environment.

“We wanted to make it a really place-based experience that you wouldn’t find anywhere else and could really reinforce for our visitors the importance of the watershed and all the unique features of where we live,” she said.