Augusta - About a thousand kids from all over Maine descended on the Maine State Museum for Maine Earth Science Day.

It only happens one day out of the year, but packed into that day is just about everything a kid could ever want to know about earth science and geology in Maine. This year's event couldn't have fallen on a better day, coming on the heels of an earthquake that seemed to dominate the conversation. "People in here seem to have felt it. About half of the people who have come to the museum today felt the earthquake last night," said Stephen Dickson, a Maine State Geologist.

Among those who felt it was Emily Williams, who was at Maine Earth Science Day with her fellow students from Farrington Elementary School in Augusta. "I was sitting on my bed watching TV and all of a sudden it started shaking," Emily said. "I thought it was like the dryer, like something was wrong with it. Then I realized it was an earthquake and my cat was scared."

There was much more than just earthquakes to keep inquiring minds busy. Eager experts like TV 5 meteorologist Rob Lydick, who was on-hand to dazzle the kids with his wealth of knowledge in the field of meteorology.

Members of the Maine Gold Prospectors Association were also in attendance, giving kids the chance to try their hand at panning for gold. "Today we're just doing some panning demonstrations to give the kids an idea of what it's like to go out and do some gold panning," Mark Folk, an avid gold panner said. "It's exciting, especially when they get to the gold at the end. It's definitely the high point."

Maine Earth Science Day is an annual event. To learn more about what the Maine State Museum offers you can check out their website:
http://mainestatemuseum.org/

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