Since Liberty Science Center opened in 1993, kids (and adults!) have been coming here to bravely embark on new adventures, and learn that things they thought were scary aren’t really scary at all.

This Halloween season, we invite you to stop by the Science Center and confront some of your greatest fears. Here are just a few of the phobias that you can overcome on your next trip to LSC…including some you probably didn’t even know existed!

1) Ophidiophobia

Sure, they might be intimidating at first, but we promise that when you meet the spellbinding snakes at Liberty Science, your ophidiophobia – fear of snakes – will just slither away!

We just added the green tree python, known for its excellent camouflage abilities, to our Eat and Be Eaten exhibit. We have many more snakes, ranging from non-lethal (such as our jungle carpet python) to lethal (such as our Gaboon viper). Of course, guests are not allowed to touch the Gaboon viper, but by learning more about these reptiles, they won’t seem so daunting.

2) Necrophobia

Necrophobia is the fear of dead bodies, but we can assure you that our Bodies Revealed premium exhibition is fascinating, not frightening. The exhibit features more than 200 real human figures and organs, respectfully preserved and displayed, allowing you the chance to see the human body in its truest form – not through the eyes of an artist.

All of the figures, skeletons and organs in Bodies Revealed Bodies Revealed came from individuals who donated their bodies to accredited medical universities for the purpose of study and education. It’s a rare opportunity to experience the astonishing inner workings of the human body.

3) Nyctophobia

The Touch Tunnel is the most popular exhibit at Liberty Science Center. Maybe that has something to do with the fact that kids feel so much braver and stronger after they go through it for the first time.

This crawl-through tunnel is 80-ft. long and completely pitch-black. If you’ve got nyctophobia – fear of the dark – that might make you a little nervous. But by using your sense of “touch” to get through the tunnel, you realize that the dark isn’t so scary at all when you’ve got your other senses to help you out!

4) Arachnophobia

Arachnophobia – fear of spiders – is one of the most common phobias in the world, despite the fact that we’re more likely to kill spiders than they are us. In fact, reports state that human deaths from spider bites have steeply declined since the 1950s, thanks to antivenin and advanced medical care.

At Liberty Science Center, you can meet our goliath birdeater tarantula (don’t let the name fool you – they barely ever eat birds), as well as our black widow spider. You may have heard that black widow spiders are dangerous, and they are. Their venom is very intense – 15 times more toxic than some rattlesnakes – but it rarely ever kills human because the spiders inject such a small amount. Regardless, LSC guests cannot touch the black widow spider.

5) Melissophobia

Bees are so important to agriculture. About one-third of our diet depends on bees, and they pollinate over 80 percent of our fruit and vegetable crops.

Therefore, if you have melissophobia – fear of bees – we encourage you to stop by our Honey Bees: Home Is Where the Hive Is exhibition on the third floor and see a live colony in action. Honey bees aren’t scary at all; they’re hard workers who contribute massively to our environment. Don’t you think they deserve a little respect?

6) Astraphobia

If you’re scared of thunderstorms, then you might have astraphobia – the fear of lightning.

Maybe, then, you should step into the shoes of Nikola Tesla, whose bold experiments led to the creation of the Tesla coil, the first system that could wirelessly transmit electricity. At Liberty Science Center’s Nikola Tesla Lightning Show, you can see the coils in action as they produce bursts of lightning set to catchy musical tunes. It’s all so impressive that you’ll no longer be scared of thunderstorms, just bored that they don’t produce such awesome music.

7) Acrophobia

Some researchers say that acrophobia – fear of heights – gets worse with age, so you might want to make a trip to Liberty Science Center and overcome that phobia as soon as possible.

At LSC, you can battle your fear of heights a few different ways. First, there’s the Infinity Climber – one of our most popular activities – a suspended, multi-story play space that goes as high as 35 ft. above the atrium floor. Adults are welcome on it, too.

You can also walk the I-Beam in our Skyscraper! exhibit, which is located 18 ft. above the floor. Guests must be at least 4 ft. tall for this particular experience.

8) Pithecophobia

Pithecophobia is the fear of apes and monkeys, and if you have that, we hope you’ll learn to fall in love with the cotton-top tamarins in our Eat and Be Eaten exhibit. Every day, our Animal Husbandry team keeps the tamarins mentally and physically stimulated with games, puzzles and toys. You can even watch them on our Tam Cam, which is operational seven days a week from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm.

Due to popular demand, we also recently brought back our Curious George: Let’s Get Curious! exhibit, which is filled with STEM-focused activities based around the world of Curious George. There is certainly nothing scary about this monkey!

9) Cherophobia

Certainly one of the strangest phobias, cherophobia is the fear of having fun. From our exhibits to our movies to our interactive experiences, there’s no way of getting around it…you’re going to have a fun time at Liberty Science Center.

If you have a friend with cherophobia, we hope that you’ll help them face their fears and come visit us soon!