Science Museum, Science museum in South Kensington, London, UK.
The Science Museum is a national technology and science museum in the South Kensington district of London. The building spans seven floors with exhibitions on space travel, medicine, computing, mathematics, and engineering developments from different centuries.
The institution emerged from the Great Exhibition of 1851, when surplus items and machinery from the Royal Society of Arts formed the first collection. The museum received its current name and location in the early 20th century.
The name reflects the systematic study of nature that gained prominence in 19th-century England. School groups from across the country come here today to participate in interactive demonstrations and examine historic instruments up close.
Visitors can enter the main collection daily without charge from 10:00 to 18:00, while certain temporary exhibitions require advance booking. The lower floors offer lifts and wide corridors for prams and wheelchairs.
The Energy Hall displays working examples of historic steam engines, including the oldest surviving James Watt beam engine from 1788. This engine originally operated in a London brewery and ran there for over 100 years.
Location: South Kensington
Inception: June 26, 1909
Architects: Richard Allison
Official opening: 1857
Accessibility: Wheelchair limited access
Fee: No
Part of: Science Museum Group
Address: Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, SW7 2DD
Opening Hours: Monday-Sunday 10:00-18:00
Website: https://sciencemuseum.org.uk
GPS coordinates: 51.49750,-0.17472
Latest update: December 13, 2025 15:54
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