Don’t miss the Hunter Science Festival at Newcastle Museum. This hugely popular event is back for 2026 on Sunday 23 August from 10am to 3pm and is packed with even more FREE science and entertainment for families!
This year the festival will feature an outdoor stage so everyone can see the science shows! It’s a big day of stage performances from Fizzics Education, The Bubble Laboratory, The Pretty Amazing Jono and HMRI Poo Palace researchers.
This hugely popular day is filled with FREE science fun and hands-on experiences for kids of all ages!
Over thirty of your favourite stalls from last year are back, plus there’s even more science fun and hands-on experiences for kids and adults
This year, kids can build and race a solar car, build and test a solar boat, pick up native seeds, be a poo on the HMRI Poo Palace, climb aboard a garbage truck, visit interactive stalls and more!
Tickets for jumping on the HMRI Poo Palace at the Hunter Science Festival on Sunday 23 August, will be available via a QR code which will be displayed around the Museum on the day of the festival. Ticket releases will be staggered throughout the day, as follows:
- Tickets for sessions 10am – 12pm will be released at 9:30am
- Tickets for sessions 12 – 3pm will be released at 11:30am
- Tickets for sessions 3 – 5pm will be released at 2:30pm
Sessions for the Poo Palace on Sunday 23 August are 15 minutes long – 10 minutes of jumping and 5 minutes for finding your shoes and moving out of the area.
In addition to the Hunter Science Festival, the HMRI Poo Palace will also be operating on Saturday 22 August 10am – 3pm. So if you want the chance to do the Poo Palace when it is less crowded at the Museum, this is a good opportunity. Tickets for Saturday’s Poo Palace sessions will be available to book the day before.
As well as the Poo Palace, there’s plenty of other fun to enjoy with kids including:
- Climb inside a City of Newcastle Garbage truck and talk to the driver
- Build and race your own mini solar car with CareerLinks and HISH
- Control your own combat robot in the robot arena with FabLab and Hunter Combat Robotics
- Be a poo inside the Hunter Medical Research Institute’s Poo Palace
- Hold a real shark egg with Irukandji Shark and Ray Encounters
- Take home native seeds from the City of Newcastle’s Environmental Biodiversity Team
- Come and try the new Charge Track Legends science-education video game from Net:Zed
- Meet the humanoid robot from NUBots and the robot dog from Fizzics Education
- Build a boat and test it with AiSTEM
- Use a real radio telescope with Future You
In addition to these activities, there will be many more interactive activities from Hunter Astronomical Society, Hunter Region Botanic Gardens, City of Newcastle’s Libraries Team, The Australian Native Bee Association, UoN’s SMART Program, Geological Society of Australia, CLEANaS, The Citizen Science Podcast, Hunter Valley Amateur Beekeepers Association, CareerLinks, Newy With Kids, City of Newcastle’s Climate Change and Sustainability Team, Makerverse, Hunter Water, Renew Sustainable Living, City of Newcastle’s Transport Team, Hunter Innovation and Science Hub, City of Newcastle’s Invasive Species Team, Australian Institute of Physics, Engineers Australia, National Schools Poster Competition, AIMERS Foundation, TAFE NSW and HMRI Gastroenterology researchers!
When it’s time to eat, the Newcastle Rotary Club will be firing up the BBQ, and KT Bakes Cakes will be on hand with one of their famous “poo” cupcakes. Alternatively, bring your own picnic to enjoy on Museum Lawn.
The festival is a celebration of all things science in the Hunter and is hosted by Newcastle Museum, Hunter Innovation and Science Hub, and and Hunter Medical and Research Institute. The Hunter Science Festival is part of National Science Week.
For more information, visit the Newcastle Museum website.
