Session times:
9:30am, 10am, 10:30am, 11am, 11:30am, 12pm, 12:30pm, 1pm, 1:30pm, 2pm, 2:30pm, 3pm
Recommended for ages 6 to 13
Ignite your imagination in SparkLab, an interactive science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) space, ideal for 6 to 13 year olds!
Explore 40 interactive exhibits across three zones and discover the wonder of STEM in your everyday world! See live experiments at the Science Bar and get hands-on to create and solve challenges at the Maker Space.
Follow your curiosity and bring out your inner scientist as you question and wonder about the world around you.
Play and investigate your way through SparkLab, using many of the same skills that scientists, engineers and mathematicians use everyday.
Please be aware that SparkLab will temporarily close from 1pm to 1:30pm each day until Tuesday 27 January 2026 to allow our team to clean the space between morning and afternoon sessions. SparkLab will also be fully closed for two weeks in February (2 - 6 February and 9 - 13 February) for essential annual maintenance, deep cleaning, and exhibition updates.
From 1 January, SparkLab will introduce a new ticket specifically for children aged 3–4 years.
This new $5 ticket supports upcoming changes to SparkLab experiences designed for younger visitors and aligns SparkLab tickets with Queensland Museum’s broader museums.
Visitor numbers to SparkLab are strictly limited to ensure a safe space and increased access so you can get the most out of your visit. We highly recommend you purchase tickets online in advance, particularly during school holiday peak period to avoid disappointment.
We’re turning the sound down and reducing visitor numbers in SparkLab to create a calmer, more relaxed museum experience.
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Wonder at the changing world around us and investigate how matter moves, behaves and changes.
Explore Earth’s place in the wider universe and how this impacts our world and daily lives.
This zone includes our popular Science Bar and Science on a Sphere.
Play with light and sound as you question, test and discover how we all see and hear the world differently. Compare your perception in relation to other people and animals.
Explore forces, energy and structures, and use your imagination to design and build solutions to challenges. This zone includes our popular Maker Space.
Imagine and design solutions to challenges at the Maker Space. Make your creation from a range of materials provided, test out your design and share your thinking with others to build on ideas. Maker Space activities are included as part of your SparkLab ticket.
Slow it down
29 July 2026 – February 2027
How slow can you go? Design a way to slow down a speeding cart before it reaches the end of the track.
This activity invites you to follow a design process as you build features onto a wooden cart to slow it down as it races down a track.
Will you look to real life for inspiration? For example: parachutes, anchors or brakes. Or will you create a slowing contraption entirely from your own imagination?
The materials you will have to work with include: Cardboard, paper, fabric, crepe paper, paddle pop sticks, straws, pipe cleaners, rubber bands, patty pans, tape and string.
Look out for extra materials that you can explore and borrow during your visit!
Think of some solutions
Make a prototype
Test it out
Improve your design
This activity supports the key learning areas of Science and Design & Technology, in the Australian Curriculum.
Get up close with live science experiments and explorations where the audience get to ask questions, predict outcomes and direct part of the investigation. These drop-in Science Bar programs are short, intimate experiences that are tailored to the audience.
The Science Bar program changes daily and is included as part of your SparkLab ticket.
Check out the screens in SparkLab for today’s programs and times.
Going down hill
Do all things tumble in the same way when moving down a
slope? Select different materials and choose the angle of the
slope as you investigate how we can change the way things move.
Good vibrations
How can changing properties change the pitch and volume
of the sounds we make? Let's make some noise at the Science Bar
as you test out your ideas.
Under pressure
What would a marshmallow look like in the vacuum of
outer space? Use your science skills to predict and explore how
changing air pressure can lead to observable changes in a
variety of objects.
Melting moments
Things are heating up at the Science Bar. Test our your
ideas for changing solids into liquids. How do different
materials compare? What can you do to affect the rate of change?
Will it float?
Which substances will you choose to go head-to-head in
the float tank? Join us at the Science Bar as we explore the
mysteries of density and discover together what features make
substances sink or float?
Snap, crackle, watt?
Have you ever been zapped by a door handle or had your
hair stand up on a trampoline? What materials will you select to
create static electricity and how can you use it to make
something move
Mix master
Mixing two or more chemicals together can sometimes
lead to surprising outcomes. Use your science skills to see what
changes might happen. What will you decide to mix together?
Lights, colour, action!
How can we use light and colour to change the way
something looks? What happens if we mix different colours
together or if we block colours of light? Lead the investigation
as we explore the wonders of our colourful world.
Soapy and sour
Things are not always as they seem. Use science, colour and
universal indicator to explore the hidden properties of liquids.
How can we change how soapy or sour a liquid is?
Science on a Sphere has so much for you to explore! Marvel at the beauty of our blue planet with an image of the Earth compiled by NASA satellite imagery. Watch real-time clouds move across our planet and spot the moment when a cyclone begins to form. Then blast-off to outer space to visit Mercury, Saturn and beyond.
Science on a Sphere is a huge 1.8m diameter sphere suspended in the centre of SparkLab. It uses the latest digital technology from satellites and ground-based instruments to project over 570 global, environmental and planetary datasets onto its surface. Explore swirling ocean currents, animal migrations, plate tectonics, earthquakes, Jupiter’s moons and much more at the touch of a screen.
Developed by researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the United States, this technology helps users to visualise and understand the wonder of the world around us and Earth’s place in the solar system.
Discover what you can explore by visiting Science on a Sphere datasets and choose how you explore when you visit SparkLab.
Self-led exploration
Follow your curiosity with the
touchscreen kiosk to investigate our Earth, take
a trip to Mars, visit Venus or circle the Sun.
Facilitated exploration
Join one of our regular facilitated
Science on a Sphere exploration sessions where
you can ask questions, share your observations
and build on new ideas.
Science on a Sphere App
Continue your exploration anywhere with
the SOS Explorer™ Mobile app version of
Science on a Sphere, now freely available for download.
Our Tesla Coil takes centre stage as we create, control and transform giant electric sparks!
Delve into the science behind it all as you explore the impact of altering spark frequency and intensity on your senses. Listen carefully, for you might discover the surprisingly musical side of these electrifying demonstrations.
Electric Sparks show times:
School days (off-peak): 2:45pm
Weekends and school holidays (peak): 11:45am and 2:45pm
*Program times are subject to change.
Warning! Tesla Coil demonstrations may not be suitable for all audiences.
Please inform a staff member if any of the following applies to you or your companions:
The Tesla coil can be loud, but that's all part of the excitement! We've taken careful measures to ensure everyone's comfort.
Noise Zones are clearly marked:
We'll make announcements before each show to warn visitors about the noise and bright lights. You can approach a team member for a pass out and re-enter the SparkLab after the show.
SparkLab is ideal for schools and groups with children aged 6 – 13 years (Prep – Year 8). A discounted ticket price is available for the following group bookings:
There are three SparkLab sessions available for school bookings:
Please note, bookings are essential for all school and children's group visits. We recommend you book as far in advance as possible to secure your preferred visit date and time.
SparkLab exhibits and programs link to the Australian National Curriculum in the learning areas of Science, Technologies and Mathematics, and support students to develop their general capabilities in Literacy, Numeracy, and Critical and Creative Thinking. Direct links exists for Physical Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Earth and Space Sciences and Science Inquiry Skills, along with links to Design and Technologies knowledge, processes and skills.
Queensland Museum welcomes all visitors and offers accessible parking and wheelchair access to exhibits, restrooms and café.
This exhibition features:
Usually
noisy
Very
low light
Seating
area
Interactive
and touch objects
Light
projections
For accessibility assistance and resources for this exhibition, please
visit our accessibility page or contact the museum on (07) 3153
3000.
Learn more
Plan your visit to Queensland Museum Kurilpa, centrally located at the Queensland Cultural Centre, South Bank.
Queensland Museum Kurilpa is easily accessible by foot, on public transport or by car.
Accessibility and sensory information to help you plan your visit to Queensland Museum Kurilpa.
View our calendar of exhibitions, events, activities and school programs.
Curious? Discover over 1,300 fascinating objects, intriguing digital displays and fun interactive spaces at the Discovery Centre.
Queensland is defined by its distinct environments and animals. Journey through five of our breathtaking environments.
