Expand your universe with National Science Week at Museums Victoria
Open your mind to new perspectives, discoveries and understandings of our shared universe when National Science Week 2024 comes to Museums Victoria from Saturday 10 August to Sunday 18 August.
Australia’s annual celebration of science and technology brings a jam-packed calendar of workshops, exhibitions, expert talks and education programs for science lovers of all ages to Melbourne Museum, IMAX Melbourne and Scienceworks.
This year’s theme, Species Survival – More Than Just Sustainability, invites us to delve deeper into the critical issues facing our planet's biodiversity and explore innovative solutions for the survival and prosperity of diverse species in our rapidly changing world.
Enjoy special access to the rare and remarkable in Science on Show as Museums Victoria Research Institute experts highlight the surprising evolutionary adaptations that help species survive and showcase unique collections from various fields including palaeontology, marine biology, herpetology, ornithology, entomology, live exhibits and mineralogy.
While every week is science week at Scienceworks, Australia’s science museum will this year host two extraordinary guests. Australia’s first astronaut, Katherine Bennell-Pegg, will kick off National Science Week with an exclusive interview at Scienceworks. Additionally, Melbourne expat Dr Adrian Brown, deputy program scientist on NASA’s Perseverance Mission to Mars, will join the Melbourne Planetarium live from NASA headquarters in Washington D.C. for a conversation with Museums Victoria’s senior curator of astronomy, Dr Tanya Hill.
At Melbourne Museum, travel through time with two world-leading palaeontologists to discover the rise and fall of T. rex and Triceratops, with Museums Victoria Research Institute’s Dr Erich Fitzgerald and curator of dinosauria at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Dr Matthew Carrano.
Witness the power of citizen science in the thrilling documentary T.REX 3D on the giant IMAX screen as narrator Sam Neill tells the story of three tenacious kids and a group of palaeontologists who made a remarkable discovery in Hell Creek, Montana.
Lynley Crosswell, Museums Victoria CEO and Director said, ‘Museums Victoria celebrates the wonders of science every day and National Science Week is an unmissable opportunity to spotlight our latest discoveries. This year's program sparks discussions on life's big questions, helps us understand the world around us, and inspires future generations to embrace the essential skills necessary for engagement in STEM-related fields.’
Don't miss out on this celebration of science! Discover more highlights below and find the full program on the Museums Victoria website.
MELBOURNE MUSEUM
The Rise and Fall of T. rex and Triceratops
Wednesday 14 August, 6–7pm | Ticketed event
Travel through time with two world-leading palaeontologists, Museums Victoria Research Institute’s Dr Erich Fitzgerald and curator of dinosauria at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Dr Matthew Carrano, at Melbourne Museum.
Under the same roof as Victoria the T. rex, the largest and most complete T. rex fossil ever to be seen in Australia, and Horridus the Triceratops, one of the world's most complete Triceratops fossils, journey back 66 million years to the Late Cretaceous period to explore the fascinating biology and behaviours of these two most iconic dinosaur species. Discover the cataclysmic events that led to their demise, marking the end of an era.
Science on Show
Saturday 10 August and Sunday 18 August, 10am–2pm | Included with museum entry
Get a glimpse of some of the rarest and most fascinating specimens in the State Collection and hear from Museums Victoria Research Institute experts as they discuss unique collections from various fields including palaeontology, marine biology, herpetology, ornithology, entomology, live exhibits and mineralogy.
Nocturnal: Slim to None
Thursday 8 August, 6–9pm | Ticketed event for adults 18+
Nocturnal is your adults-only invite to experience Melbourne Museum’s collections and a special program of themed talks, tours and activities including access to the Victoria the T. rex exhibition included with your ticket.
Learn something new about species survival against the odds with our line-up of museum experts and let your hair down with friends, food, drinks, activities and a DJ until late.
Victoria the T. rex
Melbourne Museum Touring Hall | Ticketed exhibition
Victoria the T. rex is a world-class, interactive exhibition starring the real fossil skeleton of a 66-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus named Victoria, exclusive to Melbourne Museum.
Through state-of-the-art technologies including augmented reality, 3D projection mapping and interactive elements, Victoria the T. rex transports visitors back 66 million years to the Cretaceous Period when dinosaurs roamed Earth.
Digital Art Class | Science Week Edition
Tuesday 13 August at 4pm and 6.30pm
From Triceratops to a world of bugs, Melbourne Museum is an amazing source of inspiration. Discover the wonders of digital drawing in this science-focused art workshop.
Designed to inspire creativity, our Digital Art Class takes place in a unique digital immersive space. You will learn digital skills for drawing amazing museum objects.
Tiny Tours
Fridays 10–10.45am and 11.30am–12.15pm | Developed for early year audiences aged three to five years
Facilitated by learning experts and themed around museum objects that connect children to their world, this 45-minute tour created for early years audiences invites guests to wonder, discover and be amazed.
SCIENCEWORKS
Journey Beyond: A Morning with Astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg
Sunday 11 August, 10.30am–noon | Included with museum entry
Australia’s first astronaut, Katherine Bennell-Pegg, will be at Scienceworks to kick off National Science Week.
Join us for an exclusive interview with Katherine and witness her launch a mini-rocket to start the Blast Off amphitheatre show.
From her early days in Sydney to becoming the first astronaut trained under the Australian flag in 2024, Katherine Bennell-Pegg has always had her eyes set on space.
From Melbourne to Mars: The Hunt for Life in Space
Saturday 17 August, noon–12.45pm | Melbourne Planetarium
Hear the latest update on Mars with Dr Adrian Brown, deputy program scientist on NASA’s Perseverance Mission. This live planetarium session will be hosted by Dr Tanya Hill, with Dr Adrian Brown appearing on-screen from Washington D.C., USA to share his story of growing up in Melbourne and making it to NASA.
Dr Brown will share his work on an ambitious mission that will one day bring carefully selected Martian rocks and soil back here to Earth so they can be better studied and examined for signs of Martian life.
Planetarium Nights
Friday 9 August and Friday 16 August, 7.30pm and 9pm | Melbourne Planetarium
The Melbourne Planetarium reawakens after hours for adults with a stellar line-up of fulldome film screenings. At 7.30pm catch Where’s the Water to launch off planet Earth for a tour of our solar system in search of water. Visit the giant ice mountains on Pluto, sail through jets of salty water erupting from Saturn’s tiny moon Enceladus, and plunge into dark shadowy craters on scorching hot Mercury. Then at 9pm, watch Flow: Visions of Time, a closer look at this mysterious force, observing and exploring its symbols, ideas and notions by weaving them together with music and sound. The result is a non-narrative fulldome arts and music film in the shape of an immersive audiovisual concept album.
Lightning Theatre – The Glow Show
Open daily (check the website for timed sessions) | Ticketed program
Be mesmerised by the visually stunning Lightning Theatre. This 30-minute live science show explores the science of glow and luminosity, culminating in a spectacular finale with a giant Tesla coil producing lightning using over 2 million volts of electricity.
The Martian Garden
Saturday and Sunday throughout National Science Week – 10, 11, 17 and 18 August | Included with museum entry
Meet researchers from Plants for Space at Latrobe University and experiment with vertical farm robots, future foods like Martian spinach cheese, artificial intelligence, and facial recognition software to measure psychological responses to space food. See how to grow plants on earth to simulated micro-gravity. Let's create a future that helps us survive and thrive.
Energy is a Superpower
Saturday 17 August, 10.30am–3pm | Ticketed workshop
For National Science Week, join Scienceworks for this half day STEM workshop exploring the many forms of energy we employ to power our lives.
Through captivating shows and fun STEM activities, learn about different sources of energy and ways that energy can be utilised, while considering the environmental impact.
During the workshop, participants will be entertained and educated in a Lightning Room show, have a chat with an expert in engineering, and take part in a STEM challenge around electrical energy.
IMAX MELBOURNE
T. REX 3D
Saturdays and Sundays (check website for session times) | All tickets include museum entry | Combined T. REX 3D and Victoria the T. rex tickets available
Narrated by Sam Neill, see the iconic T. rex come to life on the world's biggest, best screen in this thrilling IMAX 3D documentary.
Keeping company with top tyrannosaur scientists alongside pioneering palaeo and visual effects artists, you’ve never seen the tyrant lizard king like this. Throughout the film, you’ll be transported to Hell Creek, Montana to work alongside three kids and a group of palaeontologists as they uncover a remarkable discovery on a dinosaur dig.
National Science Week 2024
Dates: Saturday 10 to Sunday 18 August
Tickets: https://museumsvictoria.com.au/national-science-week/
