The Florence Community Library has been chosen as just one of eight public libraries across the country – and the only one in Arizona – to host “Moon, Mars, & Beyond,” an exhibition focusing on NASA’s upcoming Artemis mission.

The exhibition will begin with a grand opening celebration from 10 a.m.-noon, Oct. 8, at the Florence Community Library, 778 N. Main St. The display will run through Nov. 12.

“We are thrilled to be one of eight libraries across the country to be chosen for this opportunity,” stated Florence Library Manager Lisa Lewis in a press release. “We hope that our community will come out to see, interact and enjoy the exhibit while learning more about NASA’s next phase of space exploration.”

The Florence Community Library was picked to host the exhibit as part of a competitive grant process. Lewis wrote one the eight winning submissions, said Jeff Graves, Florence’s communication and intergovernmental relations manager.

The exhibit, accompanying kits and activities will examine the path toward having a permanent presence on the moon, using the International Space Station as the micro-gravity laboratory and exploring current and future missions to Mars.

The display also explores the differences and similarities between Earth, the moon and Mars, and reveals how NASA is planning to make these trips, how humans live there, what we will learn and more, according to the release.

STEAM, or Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics, programming associated with the exhibit will be available starting Oct. 1. The programming includes a traveling planetarium, a rocket building station and a space station creator.

For dates, times, and additional information, follow the Florence Community Library on Facebook. For more information on NASA’s Artemis Mission, visit nasa.gov.

The “Moon, Mars, & Beyond” exhibit is offered by the National Center for Interactive Learning at the Space Science Institute in partnership with Education Development Center. It is supported by NASA.