Our Activities

Here are the great activities that took place at Celebrate Science 2023.

Experiment!

Schools’ Science Ambassadors: Consett Academy; Jesmond Park Academy; Longridge Towers School; Parkside Academy; St Bede's Catholic School & Sixth Form College, Lanchester; Seaham High School; Woodham Academy

Come and meet these inspiring school students with an enthusiasm for science and a talent for getting people involved in experiments. They aim to amaze and engage with their hands-on activities including testing balloon rockets, building planets and investigating slimy stuff!

Planetarium

Durham University Physics

Explore the night sky in Durham University's planetarium. Join astronomers on a journey to outer space with stories about the constellations and fascinating facts about stars, planets and what you can see in the sky tonight. Shows last approximately 25 minutes and are suitable for anyone aged four and over.

Children should be accompanied by a responsible adult.

Magnetic Engines

Locomotion

Have you ever wondered how magnetic levitation, or maglev, trains work? Come along and meet the team from Locomotion and discover the answer. You can have a go at building your own magnetic powered engine. How fast will your engine go?

Science and the Senses

Durham University Psychology

A series of fun games for children designed to highlight how important our senses are, and how they work together to help us understand the world. Children of all ages can take part in a series of fun demonstrations involving reaction time tests, a speech warping machine, and the ‘rubber hand illusion’.

Mimi’s Rainbow Adventure

Institute of Physics

Mimi has lots of questions; about the sky, the sea and everything in-between! One summer, when Mimi is staying with her Granny, they go off on an adventure, with Colin the dog and Dave the robot, to meet lots of inspiring scientists to help her finally get some answers to her big questions.

Experience this new story come to life: Get hands-on with fun experiments for all the family and make your very own wind turbine, inspired by one of Mimi's big questions 'what is green energy?’

Nanobots!

Durham University Chemistry

Swing into high gear as you step onto the track in the battle against cancer. Take the wheel of a remote controlled forklift truck and go on a mission to eradicate the cancer cells around the track. Power your truck using a unique activation light and discover the incredible way nano-drills use light to target and safely eradicate cancerous cells in the body.

Eye Openers

Beamish Museum

Have you ever tricked your eyes into seeing something that wasn’t there? The Victorians were fascinated by optical illusions, and designed a whole variety to entertain. Have a go at tricking your eyes with our examples, and make one to take home.

Really Big Fractals!

Durham University Mathematical Sciences

Fractals are never-ending patterns that look the same whether you zoom in or out. They appear in nature, science and art, and show how complex things can be made using simple rules. Come and join us to build your own fractal object, and add it to the fabulous designs we create each day. We need your help! We want to make it BIG!

Rocks, Bogs and Bugs of the North Pennines

North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Partnership

The North Pennines is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a UNESCO Global Geopark, within easy reach of Durham. Get hands-on and find out for yourself how this stunning local landscape is formed from magma to mining and from peat to people. These activities are supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Peak Exercise Performance

Durham University Sport and Exercise Sciences

What helps make athletes successful at events such as the Olympics and Commonwealth Games? Sport and Exercise Sciences use a variety of different tests to monitor the athlete's performance and make sure that coach and athlete have all the information required for success. Come along and see if you could be a future Olympian!

Science All Around You

Procter & Gamble

Join scientists from Proctor & Gamble to explore the amazing science behind some of the things that you use everyday. There's more than meets the eye to many of the items you find in your home.

Galaxy Makers

Durham University Institute for Computational Cosmology

Understanding how galaxies are made is one of astronomy’s greatest puzzles. Join us to find out how we use computer simulations to test how galactic ingredients and violent events combine to shape the life history of galaxies, and make your own galaxy in the computer.

Sun Dome

EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in the Science and Technology of Fusion Energy

Come inside our Sun Dome! Join our scientists on an exploration of the power of the Sun and fusion energy. Can we make mini suns here on Earth and will these eventually power our power stations? Shows last approximately 20 minutes and are suitable for anyone aged four and over.

Children should be accompanied by a responsible adult.

Exploring Earth Sciences

Durham University Earth Sciences

Earth Sciences helps us understand natural hazards like volcanoes, earthquakes, landslides and tsunamis. Earth Sciences also play an essential part in finding and developing new energy sources and resources. Join us to try some activities and discover what Earth Sciences is all about.

Beautiful Biosciences

Durham University Biosciences

Explore Biosciences from the microscopic to something as large as a Hippo. Can you identify an animal from the size and shape of its skull?! Augmented Reality T-shirts that help you to see inside your body and learn about your tissues and organs. Look at those tissues down the microscope and see how they all are made of tiny cells.

Our Energy Future

Durham University Durham Energy Institute

Poverty, Hunger, Disease, Water, Energy, Climate. These global challenges, and many more, need solutions to make the world a better place for everyone. Come and join us to explore effective solutions to some of these challenges. You too can be a problem solver and make a difference.

The History of Medicine

Durham University Library and Collections Learning and Engagement Team

Feeling under the weather? Try the finest Tudor Treatments, Medieval Medicines or Roman Remedies two thousand years of history have to offer. Spin the wheel of diagnosis and receive a cure* from one of our historical doctors.**

*Not really a cure           ** Not really doctors

Warning: cure may actually be worse than the disease

Light Entertainment

Durham University Physics

Light and atoms are all around us, but is there more to them than meets the eye? Discover the physics of 3D films, make your own colour-changing picture and learn how we can use light to identify different atoms.

Bubbles!

Durham University Chemistry

Why does soap form bubbles? Why do they pop? Join us to investigate the science behind bubbles and put your bubble-blowing skills to the test. We will also learn how scientists use tiny bubbles to coat new medicines to make them safer. See if you can capture a rubber duck inside a bubble in the same way!

Digging Through Time

Durham University Department of Archaeology

Have you ever wondered what it is like to be an archaeologist? Come and join us to explore how the remains that people leave behind can help us to understand the past. Investigate animal skulls and a human skeleton. Inspect bone casts to see what we can learn about past people, their health, lifestyle and diet. Join in with our test-pit excavations: uncover and record artefacts to unravel the stories of the people who left them behind!  

Medicine Makers

The Biochemical Society

Ever wondered how medicines work in our bodies and stop us feeling pain? Come and find out by making your own model of a painkiller with the Biochemical Society!

Genetic Jenga

The Biochemical Society

Come and play Genetic Jenga with the Biochemical Society! Learn about DNA in our bodies, and how we can change it to help treat diseases.

Flower Power

RSPB Saltholme

The world is full of wonderful wildlife. So full, in fact, that it can be quite difficult to count it all. Want to discover how scientists know how many species we have? Have a go at surveying and find out why it’s so important! 

Glaciers

Durham University Geography

Have you ever wondered how our landscape was made? Come and join us to build your own glacier, which have been shaping the north of England for much of the past 2 million years!