Space gallery opens at the Science Museum

• Space, a new free gallery revealing fascinating stories behind space exploration, is now open at the Science Museum;
• The gallery showcases new technologies from the UK space sector, on display for the very first time, including prototype propulsion technology from Magdrive, as well as international innovations, such as the ‘rolly-polly’ Moon rover– the result of the first collaboration between a space agency and a toy company;
• Space features iconic objects including a three-billion-year-old piece of the Moon, the spacecraft that carried astronaut Tim Peake and the newly-conserved space suit worn by the first British astronaut Helen Sharman;
• For the first time, the Soyuz descent module and the Apollo 10 command module are on display alongside each other. The Science Museum is the only place to see a Soyuz and an Apollo capsule next to one another, allowing visitors to see up close the differences between these two human-flown spacecraft.

Space gallery
Free, ticketed

A significant new gallery, Space, opened at the Science Museum, inviting visitors to discover a new perspective on iconic space objects. The free gallery brings together remarkable objects that celebrate the first space age and cutting-edge prototype technology that represents the future of space exploration which have never before been displayed.

Two remarkable human-flown spacecraft - the Soyuz descent module that carried astronaut Tim Peake into space and back, and the Apollo 10 command module which orbited the Moon in May 1969 - are displayed side-by-side for the first time in the new gallery, with visitors invited to see the scorched surfaces and peer inside these iconic spacecraft. Visitors can also see Mercury, Mars and other planets and moons in the Solar System projected onto a large sphere at the heart of the gallery, with insights into these strange worlds provided through new narration by British astronaut Helen Sharman.

The new gallery features a larger-than-life Moonscape, taken from a photograph captured by the Apollo 17 crew, which stretches 20 metres along the gallery wall. Meanwhile the 6-metre-tall full-size engineering model of BepiColombo and 3-metre-tall J2 rocket engine stretch up towards the museum galleries above.

Sir Ian Blatchford, Director and Chief Executive of the Science Museum Group, said: ‘As a species, we’ve always looked to the stars. I have no doubt that the wonders of space we showcase in our new gallery will inspire and thrill a new generation of visitors. Whether you’re fascinated by the engineering behind space exploration, inspired by stories of space pioneers, or simply curious about the planets, Space invites you to delve into humanity’s greatest adventure.’

The Space gallery features never-before-seen innovations from home and abroad. Developed in part by the company behind Transformers and Furbys – in the first, and so far only, collaboration between a space agency (JAXA) and a toy company (Takara Tomy) – the LEV-2 is the smallest rover to operate on the Moon and employed a novel way to autonomously move. The LEV-2’s round outer-sphere separates and then the halves function as wheels. It was dubbed the ‘rolly-polly probe’ by the press. On display in the UK for the first time, Space displays the model used to test the movement of the rover.

Space explores some of the new technologies from the rapidly expanding UK space sector. Visitors can see a prototype propulsion system by Magdrive, which would allow small satellites to quickly and easily manoeuvre while in orbit. The first of these prototypes was developed by one of the founders in his daughter’s bedroom during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. The British company’s electric propulsion technology uses a novel metal propellent. This summer, Magdrive launched the first in-orbit test of its prototype space thruster and, as part of this, ran a competition in collaboration with the Science Museum to design its mission patch. The winning patch design, created by Troy aged 12, was used for the mission and is displayed alongside the prototype thruster in the new Space gallery.  

A prototype heat shield developed by Welsh company Space Forge to protect materials manufactured in orbit as they are transported to Earth is also on display for the first time. Commercial space return vehicles currently use heat shields which require replacement after every flight. In contrast, Space Forge’s Pridwen heat shield is made of a high temperature alloy which is large enough to radiate the heat of re-entry away without burning the material. This prototype represents an opportunity to develop a fully reusable shield.

Abbie MacKinnon, Lead Curator of the Space gallery at the Science Museum, said: ‘I have no doubt that the fascinating objects and stories in our new Space gallery will enthral visitors of all ages, from the historic Apollo 10 spacecraft which carried astronauts to the Moon to the people developing novel space technologies in the UK today. I can’t wait to see our visitors explore the new gallery and be inspired by the wonders of space.’

As well as featuring technology, like the Spire LEMUR2 nanosatellite used to provide weather information to climate scientists, the gallery also highlights the stories of the people behind the science. For example, visitors can see a portrait of Zoe Clark and read more about her story.  Zoe joined Spire in Glasgow as a 16-year-old apprentice and went on to become a satellite lead technician, making sure that the satellites were ready. She is now the mission manager, overseeing the launches of Spire’s satellites.

This British story of space exploration stretches back decades. Space redisplays the newly conserved Sokol spacesuit worn by Helen Sharman, who was just 27 years old when she became the first Briton in space. Her journey there was anything but typical. Sharman was working at the confectioners, Mars, when she answered a radio ad to join a mission to the Mir Space Station. 54 specific measurements went into creating her 10kg Sokol KV2 spacesuit, which she wore during the riskiest parts of the flight. Ahead of its redisplay, the suit underwent vital conservation work this summer to ensure this thirty-year-old spacesuit can continue to inspire visitors for many years to come.

The Soyuz TMA-19M Descent Module, which transported the UK’s first ESA astronaut Tim Peake to and from the ISS - and clocked 74,000,000 miles as it orbited the Earth - was the first flown human spacecraft acquired by the UK when it was collected by the Science Museum Group. Visitors can see the scorch marks on the surface of the capsule from its fiery return to Earth and peer inside at the control panel. Suspended above is the spacecraft’s vast 25m-wide parachute, which slowed the descent speed from 287km per hour to just 22km per hour ahead of the landing.

For the first time two human flown spacecraft are displayed alongside one another in the museum, with visitors able to examine the differences between the Soyuz spacecraft and the Apollo 10 command module, which orbited the Moon in 1969. Apollo 10 was launched in May 1969 on a lunar orbital mission as the dress rehearsal for the Apollo 11 Moon landing. It remains the fastest ever crewed vehicle, exceeding 39,895km per hour on its return to Earth. Visitors can also see the radio headset used by Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong to communicate with Mission Control. Nearby, an imposing statue of Yuri Gagarin, the first person in space, commemorates this significant and widely celebrated moment in the history of space exploration.

A three-billion-year-old piece of the Moon forms a focal point in Space. Visitors can get close to a sample from one of the largest Moon rocks collected: Great Scott. Such was the size of the rock, Astronaut David Scott had to roll it up the leg of his space suit and then tip it into the Lunar Rover. It is thought to have lain on the surface for approximately 80 million years before it was collected during the Apollo 15 mission. Visitors can imagine themselves on the Moon’s surface thanks to a vast moonscape displayed on the gallery’s 20m long wall. Taken by the Apollo 17 crew, the photograph features a lunar rover and astronaut Harrison ’Jack’ Schmitt, the only scientist to visit the Moon, and was recently digitally remastered by Apollo imaging specialist Andy Saunders.

The gallery features the remarkable RL10 rocket engine, which has helped launch spacecraft to every planet in the Solar System. First used in 1963, more than 500 RL10 engines have since flown. These engines still play a major role in space exploration six decades later. An updated version of this engine will help propel humans back to the Moon for the first time since 1972 as part of the Artemis programme. Visitors to Space can also get up close to the full-size testing model of BepiColombo. The spacecraft which launched in 2018 is due to arrive at Mercury – the least explored rocky planet in the solar system – in 2026 as part of an ESA/JAXA mission.

To mark the opening of the new gallery, there will be a weekend of free space-related activities across the museum, with visitors able to learn about Imperial College London’s cutting-edge space research and create personalised Martian space suits. Visitors can also see and take part in science demonstrations and live experiments in The Space Show, which will take place each weekend and daily during school holidays from 20 September 2025 until 5 January 2026.

Visitors can also enjoy our space film season in IMAX: The Ronson Theatre, with evening screenings of Apollo 13, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Interstellar and more from Monday 22 September 2025, while free weekend activities for families will take place in the museum during World Space Week in October. Our sleepover like no other, Astronights, will also take place monthly through to December, with young campers able to explore the new gallery and take part in space-inspired workshops in the museum after dark.

Notes to Editors   

Find out more about The Space Show, our space film season and more space-related activities for visitors on our website.

A new retail range is available from the Space shop, located next to the gallery, and online. Highlights include the Grand Tour poster and accompanying range, which honours NASA’s historic Voyager missions, an exclusive children’s astronaut suit and helmet for young adventurers, and a print of Earthrise, the famous photograph captured by Apollo 8’s Bill Anders and recently digitally remastered by Apollo imaging specialist Andy Saunders.    

Space is the first of three new free galleries which will reimagine the ground floor of the museum and provide almost 3500m2 of public gallery space for visitors to enjoy for free. Tomorrow: The Bennett Gallery is expected to open in early 2027 and will showcase the scientific research that will change our future. Fundraising is currently underway to support Ages of Invention, which will delve into the innovations that shaped our present, and which is expected to open towards the end of this decade.

About the Science Museum  

The Science Museum is part of the Science Museum Group, the world’s leading group of science museums that share a world-class collection providing an enduring record of scientific, technological and medical achievements from across the globe. Over the last century the Science Museum has grown in scale and scope, inspiring visitors with exhibitions covering topics as diverse as robots, codebreaking, cosmonauts and superbugs. The Science Museum was named a winner of the prestigious Art Fund Museum of the Year prize for 2020. Follow on X, Facebook and Instagram.  

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