Our physics research delves into the origins of the Moon and galaxies - and now people can have a go at shaping the cosmos themselves.
Our hands-on exhibit, Universe Makers, will feature at the prestigious Royal Society Summer Exhibition 2026 held in London.
Led by our Institute for Computational Cosmology, Universe Makers will give people the chance to virtually create their own galaxies or Universe.
Visitors can also crash planets into each other to make their own moons.
This will all be delivered by our staff and students working with colleagues at Imperial, Portsmouth and Sussex universities at the event from 30 June to 5 July.
The ingredients of the Universe
Universe Makers allows people to play with the ingredients that make up the Universe.
They can tweak the amount of gravity or dark matter - the mysterious force that provides the structure of the Universe - and see how this impacts star and galaxy formation.
They can also alter the angle and speed of planets as they collide in the early Universe to see if they can produce a moon which looks like the one we see in the night sky.
The exhibit also includes a "galaxy sandpit" where 3D printed objects are hidden beneath sand.
Each object found features a picture of the night sky representing a different component of the Milky Way, like young stars and spiral arms, to show how astronomers piece together our galaxy's structure.
A leading centre of cosmology and astronomy research
Durham is one of the world's leading centres of cosmology and astronomy research.
Using the COSMA 8 supercomputer, our cosmologists simulate the birth of moons and planets and the wider Universe.
Our astronomers then compare the simulations to their observations of the real Universe.
This helps them to understand the conditions that led to the formation of the Universe and its component parts like stars, planets and galaxies.
Ultimately it could tell us what the fate of the Universe might be.
