The Oatmeal's Tesla Museum Campaign Hits Goal [INFOGRAPHIC]

Less than a week after launching a fundraising campaign to save the Tesla Tower, comic website The Oatmeal has reached its goal -- and then some.

Matthew Inman, the site's creator, raised nearly $900,000 for "Operation Let's Build a Goddamn Tesla Museum" as of Tuesday night, surpassing his original target of $850,000. The tipping point was a $33,000 contribution from one generous donor earlier Tuesday.

Inman says he plans to continue raising money for the museum until the Indiegogo campaign ends in 39 days.

"We're just going to let it run to see what happens," he tells Mashable. "The more the merrier."

"I didn't think [$850,000] was realistic. I figured we'd just give it a shot."

With the funds, he says he hopes to convert Wardenclyffe, Nikola Tesla's laboratory located in Shoreham, NY, into a museum and science center honoring the Serbian-American inventor.

The Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe, a local nonprofit group, is trying to raise funds to buy the $1.6 million property, which recently went up for sale. Although Wardenclyffe was demolished in 1917, the tower's surroundings remain in tact.

New York State offered to match any funds raised by the nonprofit up to $850,000; so to help, Inman aimed to raise the same amount -- for a total of $1.7 million.

While that's enough for the Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe to buy the property, it will take $6 to 10 million to build the museum, Inman says.

He adds that he hopes to "break ground" on construction next July 10, the anniversary of Tesla's birthday.

Any money raised that isn't needed for the purchase will go towards restoration, says Jane Alcorn, president of the Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe.

"We still have to negotiate with Afga [Corporation, the current owners] about the price, and then, once that is done, we have to begin the process of having experts evaluate what has to be done to the buildings and grounds to create a science center and museum," she tells Mashable in an email.

Since the campaign started last week, it has raised an average of $145,000 per day, $6,000 per hour and $100 per minute, with contributions coming from 102 countries, according to an infographic by Indiegogo. So far, 20,000 people have donated.

Inman says he became a fan of Tesla's two-and-a-half years ago after writing a comic about the inventor, long considered an unsung genius and pioneer of electrical energy.

"It's exciting ... [to have a] direct influence on the legacy of someone I consider a hero."

For more stats on "Operation Let's Build a Goddamn Tesla Museum," check out the infographic below.

This story originally published on Mashable here.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/oatmeals-tesla-museum-campaign-hits-goal-infographic-023605911.html

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