A centre for informal science education featuring a planetarium and a land, sea and sky gallery, among other interactive activities, is expected to open by the third quarter of 2016, the Abu Dhabi Technology Development Committee (TDC) has 
announced.
The 6,500 square-metre facility will be set up in Masdar City and will include over 200 interactive hands-on exhibitions alongside 120 educational programmes including teacher workshops, science day camps and science clubs.
“Based on the successes of the past three consecutive Science Festivals, we were able to identify the areas that students are most interested in. Plus, in one of the videos that we took at the Science Festival, an attendee asked a very important question which we took to heart. He said, ‘Why does this only have to happen once a year?; So we took the matter seriously and decided to act upon his request,” Ahmad Saeed Al Khalili, Director- General of the TDC, told Gulf News.
Officials expect around 200,000 guests every year at the Science Centre, with 30 per cent of visitors coming on school visits. The TDC has also coordinated with the Abu Dhabi Education Council ( Adec ) to make the Science Centre’s content compatible with science curricula across Adec schools.
“Forming an interest in science fields between the ages of six to 11, research has shown, is the biggest predictor of whether they pursue careers in those areas when they grow older. This is why although people of all ages will be able to have fun and find something interesting to do and learn at the Centre, we are mainly targeting the six to 11 age group,” said Linda Silver, Associate Director, Content – Science and Technology Promotion.
“We will be looking to hire around 76 staff members, preferably bilingual Emiratis, who will also be trained in taking safety measures and precautions when handling the equipment and allowing the public to participate in the various activities,” she added.