Wright & Wright at our 'Cultural Cities' forum this March

Image: Exhibition Road elevation of the Science Museum, South Kensington - courtesy of Science Museum Group

The ground floor of the Science Museum in London is to undergo a transformation over the next five years with the opening of three new free galleries exploring space, stories of the science of today and the history of invention. The three galleries will provide almost 3,500 square metres of public gallery space.

As part of the changes, the 40-year-old Exploring Space gallery will close after the Easter holidays. It will be replaced by a new Space gallery in autumn 2025 in the museum’s West Hall.

The new displays will include two human flown spacecraft (Apollo 10 and Soyuz), the radio headset used by Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong, and a full-size testing model of BepiColombo, the spacecraft expected to arrive on Mercury in 2026. The Science Museum declined to reveal the cost of any of the new galleries but said the Space exhibition would be self-funded.

Wright & Wright is designing the second of the three galleries. Opening in early 2027, Tomorrow: The Bennett Gallery will invite visitors to explore the scientific research happening today that will impact our lives tomorrow: research that expands what we know about ourselves, our world and our universe.

Designed by Wright and Wright Architects, Tomorrow will reveal the museum’s historic architecture with a widened gallery entrance to aid the movement of millions of people who visit the museum each year. Tomorrow: The Bennett Gallery is supported by the Peter Bennett Foundation (Title Funder), UKRI (Lead Partner) and the Julia Rausing Trust (Principal Funder).

It reports:

'The new gallery will provide a striking first impression of the Science Museum for visitors by celebrating curiosity. It will offer an engaging place to discover the latest developments in science and understand why these compelling contemporary science stories matter to all of us. Visitors will be encouraged to explore some of the most important and relevant questions of our time - from what makes us human to how the universe began.

'To help make sense of the sheer range of research happening across the globe, the gallery will feature three sections which explore scientific endeavour at increasing scale (human, planet and universe) while also revealing the people and stories behind the latest scientific research.

'In Tomorrow: The Bennett Gallery, visitors will discover more about how our trillions of cells work through a focus on the Human Cell Atlas, which aims to map every cell in the human body; explore how CRISPR gene editing technology is transforming medicine and lives; and delve into the latest research in robotics and neuroscience.

'The planet section will showcase how science can help us live differently on our changing world. It will examine solutions for tackling plastic pollution; how we can build more environmentally friendly houses; and highlight the latest insights from world-leading science ​institutes into how we can sustainably feed a growing population.

'The gallery will explore science at the cosmic scale, featuring extraordinary experiments that are helping scientists investigate black holes, how our universe began and what it’s made of. Visitors will see the latest James Webb Space Telescope imagery, and discover more about the IceCube Neutrino Laboratory​, where scientists are capturing particles that can reveal the history of our universe, Tomorrow will also showcase the latest scientific developments in the Futures section, shining a spotlight on current scientific research through a changing display area which will initially celebrate innovations in quantum computing.'

The third new gallery in the ground floor redevelopment according to the Science Museum, is still subject to fundraising but should open before 2030. The Ages of Invention will showcase hundreds of exceptional and everyday objects connected to significant developments in science, technology and engineering – from the growth of mass manufacturing and the discovery of synthetic materials to understanding general relativity and measuring climate change.

Ian Blatchford, director and chief executive of the Science Museum Group, who is now the longest serving head of the organisation, having been in post for 14 years, said:

'Through the imagination and dedication of extraordinary colleagues and our board of trustees we have achieved much, but our focus is firmly on the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead, not least in delivering these new galleries at the Science Museum which will inspire and excite our visitors during this decade and beyond.'