We’ve come a long way from “Andy Astronaut,” the NASA-produced cartoon made in 1966 to explain space travel to the masses.

In the short film, the potato-shaped Andy learns important lessons about the dangers of space. It can roast you and it can freeze you. Always wear your space helmet and space suit so whizzing meteoroids don’t make a hole in your body.

In other words, space travel is fun with the right equipment and know-how.

“Space: An Out-of-Gravity Experience,” the new exhibit at the Science Museum, conveys some of the same information, albeit in 21st century ways using interactive elements and games to learn through play how astronauts live and work in space. There’s NASA video footage about the challenges and accomplishments of scientists, astronauts and engineers involved in all stages of the process. Best of all, “Andy Astronaut” is on view, too.

The dozens of hands-on stations allow visitors to explore the extraordinary environment in space, including the dangers humans face, as well as the adaptations engineers have developed to help them survive. Less a history lesson – although one of Neil Armstrong’s gloves is included – and more of a look forward, “Space” explores what scientific innovations will be needed and what considerations are involved to construct a colony on Mars.

While a direct line can be drawn between Andy Astronaut’s space suit circa 1966 and present-day space attire, the latter are ten-layered suits that demonstrate a far better understanding of what’s necessary to safely house a human body in space. Today’s space suit begins with a layer of cotton next to the skin and then tubes to circulate water around the body and culminates ten layers later with a thermal micrometeoroid garment woven to block heat, micrometeoroids and resist chemicals, flames, cuts and tears.

Curious about the view from the International Space Station? A wall-sized screen displays jaw-dropping photographs of world views including the city lights from Florida to Newfoundland; the Southern Lights over the Indian Ocean; the Pacific coast from Baja, California to South Mexico; and the Northern Lights from Wisconsin to the East Coast, among others.

On display in a case are sealed packages of the kinds of food astronauts eat in space, most of them looking shriveled, oddly colored and unappetizing. But in a nearby video, an astronaut explains not only how to eat this food – a long spoon helps dig bites out of the carefully sealed pouches – but how tasty it is. If you’ve ever wanted to see an astronaut eat chocolate cake and sip coffee in space, the opportunity presents itself in “Space: An Out-of-Gravity Experience.”

The exhibit is full of opportunities to learn about radiation, meteoroids and temperature extremes. Visitors can experiment with a vacuum chamber to determine if they can hear a bell in space. Spoiler alert: You can’t. Because sound travels through the vibrations of atoms and molecules in the air and with no air in space, there’s no way for it to travel.

Another aspect to explore is the science of getting to space, such as the physics of the launch (add water, add air pressure and go!) and the power needed on a spacecraft. Visitors can use a 16-foot drop tower to investigate how objects behave differently in a weightless environment and then watch a slow-motion video of the experiment. Or learn about Robonauts, the robots being developed to work on the space station with the hope that they’ll eventually be able to perform the most dangerous and time-consuming jobs for astronauts.

Don’t miss the space station’s U.S. Destiny Lab module, a full-size orbiting mock-up that allows visitors to explore the sights, sounds and smells on board. The 4.5-minute experience can be intense; people have been known to throw up while experiencing it at other museums, although holding on to the railing or closing your eyes is usually enough to avoid the disorientation of orbiting. Exiting the module is also an option if things get queasy.

The touring exhibition was designed and developed by the Science Museum of Minnesota in partnership with the International Space Station Office of NASA’s Johnson Space Center, the California Science Center and partner museums.

“While many of us have probably imagined what it’s like to live in space, very few humans ever get the chance to go,” says Science Museum astronomer Justin Bartel. “This exhibition offers the next best experience to engage in that exciting journey in an immersive way.”

It’s enough to boggle Andy Astronaut’s little potato mind.

“Space: An Out-of-Gravity Experience” runs through Sept. 4, 2023 at the Science Museum, 2500 W. Broad Street. Smv.org