From learning all about why Mars is the smelliest planet in our solar system, to what we should call the next planet we discover (Twix!) - our education team have delivered over 80 guided trail visits to schools and groups from across Northern Ireland this April and May.
"It was lovely to welcome so many schools and pupils to the trail at Bay Road and take them on a journey through the solar system. Our guided trail visits were not only educational, but super fun. The joy and smiles on the pupils' faces as they were outside learning about the solar system was a joy to see. The pupils were amazed at the vast scale of the solar system and found it hard to comprehend just how small and fragile planet Earth is. This then opened up many discussions about how we should better protect our planet."
Rachel McDermott, Education Manager Our Place in Space
Journeying their way from the beginning of the Bay Road Nature Park reserve, the guided visits saw the inner planets of our solar system, including two non-scale models of Earth and the Sun designed by the artist Oliver Jeffers.
“The whole experience was out of this world. I was so impressed by how engaged and receptive all the school groups were to the solar system installation, and how much they retained from the learning experience, as well as how much they shared from their own understanding of the solar system. The future seems bright with all the young super-stars in our city.”
Luke Blakely, School Tour Guide