Museum of Science

Everyone’s talking about GLP-1 medications, but what does the science actually prove? On November 8, bring the question you’ve been afraid to ask to this candid conversation GLP-1 medications. We’re digging into the breakthroughs, the success stories, the controversies, the unanswered questions, and the real world impact with evidence-based answers from trusted medical experts. 🎟️ Free with pre-registration: bit.ly/3Unzki2

Meet the Cat’s Head Nebula, a towering pillar of dust shaped like a cat sitting with its back to us. Its tail stretches down toward a squarish cloud below. @NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captured it in near-infrared light, which lets Webb peer through some of the dust. The result reveals the filament’s complex surface structure and a dense field of blue and yellow stars. Even at these wavelengths, some stars remain wrapped in dust, hidden from full view. That glowing yellow eye may hold a young star still embedded inside the cloud. Meanwhile, the faint, wispy filaments to the cat’s left contain material being exposed to intense stellar radiation. Look closely, and Webb’s high-resolution imaging reveals even more: faint galaxies sitting far in the background, beyond the stars of our own cosmic neighborhood. 🔭 #NASA #Constellation #Space #Astronomy #Science

🧊 Arctic sea ice hit its 2026 minimum on September 12 at about 4.6 million square kilometers. The last 20 years, 2007 to 2026, hold the 20 lowest minimums in the nearly 48-year satellite record.

What a morning! @MikeBloomberg, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and Cambridge Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui joined Gwill York President of the Museum of Science Tim Ritchie for a tour of the new William and Charlotte Bloomberg Public Science Common. From immersive journeys through space and the deep ocean to interactive science programming, the new 10,000-square-foot space brings science to life in exciting new ways - sparking curiosity, inspiring discovery, and making science more accessible to all.

Does light always move at the speed of light? 🏎️ Astrophysicist @ErikaHamden explains that it doesn’t, since the famous speed of light is really a measure of light moving through empty space. Send that light through glass, like a window or a camera lens, and it slows down. That shift in speed makes light bend, and scientists describe how much it bends with a value called the index of refraction. This project is part of IF/THEN®, an initiative of Lyda Hill Philanthropies.

Join us Sunday, November 1 for free Omni Theater films, generously supported by @MathWorks. Experience space, nature, and cutting-edge innovation on a massive screen that surrounds you from every angle. Check out the films here: bit.ly/41D0NvV

🔦 What’s one science topic you could talk about for hours?

Join us on October 31 & November 1 for Spooky Science Weekend, a two-day Halloween celebration packed with science and fun for all ages! Dig into drop-in activities, tackle design challenges, and catch Halloween-themed live presentations, then show off your best family-friendly costume at our dance party with DJ Ooch. Members, don’t miss your chance to enter our member-only raffle! 🎟 Get tickets: bit.ly/4suoVO7

Join Pulitzer Prize winner, oncologist, and The Emperor of All Maladies author Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee, for a conversation on why trust in science matters. Headlining our Trust in Science Community Day on November 8, Dr. Mukherjee dives into the human side of medicine, exploring false starts, bold experiments, and the future of medicine. 🎟 Get tickets: bit.ly/4yHykTK

🕷️ Scientists just discovered two new sea spider species in the Salish Sea, including a hairy-legged, red-eyed one. Just in time for spooky season!

You can’t step on Venus without a spacesuit. 🌡️🪐 Kyle Horn of @MITAeroAstro explains that with 90 bar of pressure and temperatures of 450°C, the surface could turn lead into liquid. But if you were in the middle atmosphere, 55 kilometers up, you could step outside with just an oxygen mask and good sunscreen to catch a Venusian breeze. Up there, gravity is about 90% of Earth’s, radiation is milder than in the upper atmosphere, and the pressure and temperature are similar to Earth’s surface.

Meet the backbone of Artemis III: @NASA’s 212-foot SLS core stage. On Friday, Oct. 23, crews at Kennedy Space Center used a one-of-a-kind lifting beam to move the stage out of High Bay 2 in the Vehicle Assembly Building, where it will be joined vertically with its completed solid rocket booster segments. Meanwhile, RS-25 engines for the rocket stand lined up at the L3Harris facility in Canoga Park, California. The mission will launch crew aboard Orion to test the rendezvous and docking with commercial spacecraft needed to land astronauts on the Moon. 🚀 #NASA #Artemis #Space #Moon #Science

On October 30 & 31, journey into deep space to confront a ship returned from a hell beyond imagining with "Event Horizon" as part of our Sci-Fi Supersized movie run. Get tickets here: bit.ly/4gvS3QP

🧪 What’s one science experiment you’ll never forget doing?

This November keep your eyes peeled for earthgrazers blazing across the night sky! 🌠 The Leonid meteor shower is active November 6 - 30, peaking overnight November 16 through 17, bringing fast, colorful fireballs and the occasional low-flying Earthgrazer. The first-quarter moon sets around midnight, giving dark skies for optimal viewing in the Northern Hemisphere. Find a dark spot and look up!