Mesa Lab (National Center for Atmospheric Research)

If you don't like the weather in Colorado, just wait an hour. Or so they say, anyway. We say take the hour of miserable weather and make something of it by taking a trip up to the Mesa Lab at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder. A working research laboratory, the Mesa Lab has a number of hands-on science exhibits related to weather and climate that can be perused alone or as part of a tour. There is also an informational nature trail that overlooks Boulder and the Flatirons, as well as a supercomputer exhibit where you can see who is really running the world and how -- or maybe they're just really big weather computers. So on those rainy Mondays, instead of pouting about the weather, go learn about it.

Price: free