Scienceworks & Melbourne Planetarium

Lonely Planet review

Why is it so? Scienceworks could have the answers. To find them, you'll have to push a button, lift a flap, pull a lever, jump as high as you can, bend down, race a machine and smell rotting fruit. Built on the site of the Spotswood pumping station, Melbourne's first sewerage works, Scienceworks incorporates these historic buildings. The museum's range of permanent interactive displays includes the science of sport, household items and the human body. Occasional touring shows, such as Licence to Spy, usually coincide with school holidays. Scienceworks is very popular with school groups; the quietest times are weekday afternoons during school terms and Saturday morning. The museum is a 10-minute signposted walk from Spotswood train station.

The Melbourne Planetarium re-creates the night sky on a 16m-domed ceiling using a hi-tech computer and projection system. In the comfort of a reclining chair you can dip through a wormhole or ride the rings of Saturn. Several shows suitable for children of all ages also screen. Or, zip into the Lightning Room to see 3m lightning bolts and the flashy high-voltage pickled cucumber.