SF museum to bring back COVID-era rule despite lack of scientific support

COVID-era masking is making a brief comeback at one San Francisco museum.The Exploratorium announced Tuesday that all visitors and staff will once again be required to wear N95, KN95 or KF94 masks from 9 a.m.to 11 a.m.

on Aug.22 during a special session designed to give immunocompromised guests what the museum called a “safer experience.”The move stands out years after most pandemic-era mask mandates disappeared from public life, with the waterfront museum carving out a two-hour, mask-required window before opening for its regular Saturday hours. Attendance during the early-access session will also be limited, and the museum will provide free masks to visitors.The Exploratorium said the temporary policy comes as COVID-19 transmission rises across the Bay Area, with virus concentrations recorded at regional sewage treatment plants increasing since late July.Museum officials said the requirement is intended to help protect high-risk guests from COVID-19 and other airborne illnesses.“We’re constantly listening to our visitors, and a designated mask-required experience is something many have expressed interest in,” Rachel Hyden, senior director of visitor engagement, told the San Francisco Chronicle.Hyden added that the Exploratorium has “an internal committee that specifically looks at how to go beyond legal requirements to create more inclusive experiences.”All galleries will remain open during the mask-required session, including the museum’s summer exhibition, “Life in Space,” which runs through Sept.

13.The requirement ends at 11 a.m.The Exploratorium then returns to its regular 10 a.m.

to 5 p.m.schedule, and masks will no longer be required for visitors....