posted 08-08-2014 08:05 AM               

"We will join more than 400 international partners of the Google Cultural Institute," [Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard] said. "Children from all over the world will be able to see the exhibits."

The Google Cultural Institute functions as a kind of online museum that aims to bring cultural material like museum exhibitions, artwork, photos and documents available for free on the internet.

The Columbia Memorial Space Center includes a variety of exhibits and simulators that highlight the history of aerospace and space exploration.

Scott Maxwell, a software engineer with Google who previously worked for the Pasadena-based Jet Propulsion Laboratory addressed the children.

"The people of Downey built these big, beautiful black and white birds and watched from afar as they carried (our) hopes and dreams," Maxwell said.