DENVER -- Looking for a way to celebrate Earth Day? Come up to Boulder and celebrate both Earth Day and the 200th birthday of the National Weather Service this Friday and Saturday.

On Friday, NOAA's Boulder staff will celebrate Earth Day and the 200th anniversary of NOAA science with four floors of public activities, demonstrations, tours, and a talk on climate change at the Boulder campus on Friday, April 20.

All activities will take place at the David Skaggs Research Center, 325 Broadway -- Rayleigh Avenue just south of Baseline Road -- from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Click here for more information and directions. For more information, call Annie Reiser at 720-841-6296.

Flights through a 3-D hurricane in Meteora, NOAA's online virtual world site, a three-story barometer that boils ice-blue water at room temperature, and a mini-tornado whirling into shape in seconds are all part of this year's activities.

Craft lovers can create colorful Woolly Magma Earths using all-natural fibers.

The National Weather Service's charismatic forecaster, Byron Louis, will help kids launch a NOAA weather balloon and Ben Franklin will personally drop by to celebrate in the lobby with his raucous "Pick the Poles" and "Nosy about Nature" games for all ages.

NOAA scientist Pieter Tans will give an easy-to-understand overview of climate change and the talk will be rebroadcast for virtual visitors to the Meteora auditorium-a first for the Earth System Research Lab.

Scientists will take visitors on a black-box mystery adventure to forge their way toward new knowledge. Budding meteorologists are invited to attend a real-time weather briefing or watch the planet's most dramatic storms from space on Science on a Sphere.

Tired of Earth?

Visitors can zoom to Mars, Jupiter, and even Pluto without ever leaving the Planet Theater.

Joining in the fun will be staff from the Earth System Research Laboratory, National Geophysical Data Center, Space Environment Center, National Weather Service forecast office, and NOAA's cooperative institutes at the University of Colorado and Colorado State University.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, is celebrating 200 years of science and service to the nation.

From the establishment of the Survey of the Coast in 1807 by Thomas Jefferson to the formation of the Weather Bureau and the Commission of Fish and Fisheries in the 1870s, much of America's scientific heritage is rooted in NOAA.

Activities on Saturday

Boulder’s Community Earth Day Festival is Saturday, April 21. It combines adventure and environment, celebrating the world at our fingertips and it's dirt in our hands.

Wild Earth Saturday featuring Dirt Days is hosted by the Wild Bear Center for Nature Discovery, the National Center for Atmospheric Research and University Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR/UCAR), and the Boulder Adventure Film Festival.

This action-packed day of hands-on environmental education and outdoor adventure is free to the public and takes place from 10 a.m. -4 p.m. Saturday at NCAR’s Mesa Lab, nestled in the Flatirons, located at 1850 Table Mesa Drive in Boulder.

In celebration of Earth Day and International Polar Year, NCAR opens its doors and grounds for a day of fun under the sun.

All ages and species are invited.

Inside the Mesa Lab are hands-on exhibits presented by Wild Bear Center for Nature Discovery, UCAR, Colorado Native Plant Society, EcoCycle, International Migratory Bird Day, WASH, Laramie Raptor Refuge, Boulder/Denver Biodiesel, Face Fiesta, Play-Ground Theatre, and several other organizations.

Solar-baked cookies will be munched while people make their own biodiesel. Get an up-close look at live raptors while you tap your feet to the rockin’ tunes of David Williams.

Outside under the Flatirons the action-packed Dirt Days Challenge takes place, a multi-sport adventure competition presented by the Boulder Adventure Film Festival.

Push your mind and body to the limit at 4 main stations, including the Climbing Challenge, hosted by the Spot Climbing Gym, Pack Trot, a timed trail run with 15 percent of your body weight in a pro-fitted pack, Balance Challenge, hosted by the Access Fund, and Fly Casting, for accuracy and distance, powered by Loon Brothers.

Replenish your energy reserves with tasty, organic food and drinks donated by Wild Oats.

Big prizes are presented to all age categories. Dirt Days footage of Challenge participants will be presented on the silver screen at the Boulder Adventure Film Festival on May 12 and 13.

The Dirt Days Challenge also includes interactive exhibits from sponsors and non-profits like Simple Solar Systems, La Sportiva, Cliff Bar, Clean and Green, Crocs and others.

Wild Earth Saturday featuring Dirt Days is rooted in promoting a healthy environment and mobilizing people through awareness of the world around us and is sponsored by the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD), the Daily Camera, Crocs, the Argosy Foundation, and several other important donors. KGMH (Channel 7) is the official media sponsor of Wild Earth Saturday featuring Dirt Days.

For more information, call (303) 258-0495 or visit this Web site. To find out more and to sign up for the Dirt Days Challenge, click here.