Dorchester Science Festival 2020
Monday, February 24th, 2020Coinciding with British Science Week, Dorchester Science Festival is set to return with an exciting range of events in the County Town. The event is hosted by Dorchester Town Council, Bournemouth University, Thomas Hardye School, Dorset Museum, and the Institute of Physics. The week-long celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) runs from 6th – 15th March. The perfect opportunity to get involved and inspire the budding scientist in you!
PLEASE NOTE: The Dorchester Science Fair scheduled for Sunday, has now been postponed. The decision comes following close monitoring of advice about Coronavirus Covid-19 over the last few weeks. The event organisers are hoping to reschedule the Family Science Fair for early October.
Dorchester Family Science Fair – POSTPONED
15th March.
1pm-5pm (Ticketed event).
The Corn Exchange
Event page
A wide range of interactive scientific activities await at the Dorchester Science Fair in 2020. Local scientists will be hosting hands on activities. These will include how physics can make music using vegetables, using a high powered microscope, biodiversity of the natural world, discovering how magnets and gravity work and a demonstration of how electrical stimulation can be used to control your arms and legs.
The event is suitable for children age 4 and above, and entry is completely FREE. However, due to high demand its essential to have a pre-booked ticket to enter the event. To obtain tickets collect in person from Dorchester Tourist Information Centre on a first come first served basis. There will be 2 time slots available – from 1pm-3pm and from 3pm-5pm. Keep an eye on Dorchester Science Festival Facebook page for the latest updates!
Other events at Dorchester Science Festival
This year, the science themed celebrations will be very much more than a single day of activities. There will be a series of talks and workshops co-ordinated with the help of several partners across the town to create the first Dorchester Science Festival. Here’s a guide to what’s on and where throughout the week…
BBC VR Pop up tour at Dorchester Library
6th & 7th March
10am – 4pm (Pre-booking required)
Dorchester Library
Event page
Explore BBC film making with an immersive experience to find out what it feels like to be part of the story. ‘Damming the Nile’ is a 360° experience using Occulus Go Virtual Reality headsets, which takes you into the heart of Ethiopia – sessions are 30 minutes long.
Suitable for children over 13. (Parental consent required for 13-16yrs.)
The Crowd and the Cosmos with Chris Lintott
9th March
7pm-8:30pm
Thomas Hardye School Theatre
Event page
The first community science lectures will be ‘The Crowd and the Cosmos – Adventures in the Zooniverse’ with Chris Lintott. Chris is Professor of Astrophysics at Oxford University, and co-presenter of the BBC’s Sky at Night, and Principal Investigator of the Zooniverse.
Entry is free by ticket (max 4 tickets per person) obtainable in advance from 25th February onwards from Thomas Hardye School reception at 9am or from the Dorchester Tourist Information Centre. Donations for local charities will be welcomed at the event.
Science on the Moon – My Personal Story with Keith Wright
10th March
7pm-8:30pm
Thomas Hardye School Theatre
Event page
The second lecture will be ‘Science on the Moon – My personal story’ with Keith Wright – NASA Engineer to the Apollo program. Again, entry is FREE by advance ticket (max 4 per person) from the school’s reception at 9am or from the Dorchester Tourist Information Centre. Donations for local charities will be welcomed at the event.
Science events at Dorchester Library
14th March
10:30am start
Event page
A series of science events will take place at Dorchester Library on Saturday 14th March…
10.30am – Library Gets Lively (STEM theme) – Ages 1-5
11.00am – Thomas Hardye School Engineering Club demonstration – Ages 8+
2.30pm – Lego Club (STEM theme) – Ages 4+
Booking is not required for these activities which are free to attend and last approximately 45 mins.
A Guided Tour of the Moon and the Stars (Fully Booked)
7th & 14th March
7:30pm
Maiden Castle
Event page
Join Kevin Quinn, an experienced local astronomer, at 7.30pm at Maiden Castle Car Park for a fascinating, free talk about the summer night sky. All ages and levels of experience will be welcome to enjoy the opportunity of looking through a high quality telescope.
Kitchen Science Experiments
14th March
2pm-3:30pm
Waterstones Dorchester
Event page
Waterstones in Dorchester are offering the opportunity to come along and take a part in some exciting kitchen science experiments. Using every day household ingredients, demonstrations will show how to perform some interesting science lab experiments. No booking is necessary for this event which is suitable for ages 7 & above.
Mary Anning – The Mad Woman of Lyme
25th March
8pm-9:30pm
The Corn Exchange
Event page
‘The Mad Woman of Lyme’ is a unique show all about the life of famous Lyme Regis fossil hunter Mary Anning, put on by AsOne theatre company & Dorchester Arts. Suitable for all ages 11 & above.
