Prof. Jerzy Stelmach Maritime Science Centre in Szczecin

The Maritime Science Centre is an interactive exhibition about the sea, ships and life on the water, housed in a building modelled on a ship's hull. It stands on Łasztownia, and inside are more than two hundred exhibits that you have to touch and set going yourself.

The building and the institution

The building is 14 metres high and 122 metres long, and its form refers to the shape of a ship's hull. On three exhibition levels, with a total exhibition area of 3.1 thousand m², are the permanent exhibition, a conference room, two educational rooms and a planetarium. On the roof there is a viewing terrace connected with a restaurant.

The Centre is a cultural institution of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, established by a resolution of the regional assembly in September 2017. Its patron is Prof. Jerzy Stelmach.

Five zones of the permanent exhibition

The permanent exhibition consists of five thematic zones, and most of the exhibits are self-service devices for hands-on experiments. The Wikipedia entry speaks of 212 interactive devices, the Centre's website of more than 200 exhibits.

• Full Steam Ahead (Cała naprzód) - the design and building of a ship, types of vessels, kinds of propulsion and steering, and the properties of water that affect swimming and floating.
• Splash (Chlap) - a water playground with dams, locks, pumps and water cannons, as well as experiments explaining electric current by analogy with water. The zone is intended primarily for the youngest visitors.
• Life at Sea (Życie na morzu) - professions connected with the sea, roles on a ship, fishing, sailing, and the customs and traditions of seafarers.
• The Sea's Elements (Morski żywioł) - water, wind and ice, ways of protecting oneself from them, rescue equipment, emergencies, calling for help, rescue operations and underwater research.
• Which Way to Africa? (Którędy do Afryki?) - navigation in the past and today, cartography, ocean voyages, global shipping traffic and human impact on the seas.

Alongside the interactive stations, original objects are also shown: parts of vessels and their equipment, sailing tools and instruments, models, mock-ups and maritime souvenirs. The content covers physics, mathematics, astronomy, geography, medicine, technology, history and art, always in relation to life at sea, navigation, fishing and the work of the port.

Planetarium and workshops

The Centre has its own planetarium, called the Wolszczan Planetarium, with an audience of 43 people. The programme of shows and tickets are given on the Centre's website.

Workshops are held in the studios, including model-making and boatbuilding. For children aged 9-12 there is the Children's University named after Prof. Jerzy Stelmach, that is the Szczecin School of Ship's Boys (Szczecińska Szkoła Jungów), run jointly with the West Pomeranian District Sailing Association. The programme covers marine science, sailing and the exact sciences.

Practical information

• Address: Nad Duńczycą 1, Szczecin (Łasztownia).
• Hours according to the Centre's website: Monday closed, Tuesday-Friday 9:00-17:00, Saturday-Sunday 10:00-18:00. The ticket offices and information point open correspondingly earlier, and close an hour before the Centre closes.
• The viewing terrace is open from Tuesday to Sunday: from May to September 9:00-22:00, from October to April 10:00-18:00.
• On public holidays different rules apply, so check the hours on the Centre's website before your visit.
• Tickets can be bought online, and the price list is on the venue's website. Cloakrooms and facilities for people with disabilities are available.

Nearby

• Ducal Castle - about 0.5 km.
• National Museum in Szczecin - about 0.5 km.
• Chrobry Embankment - about 0.5 km.
• Szczecin Port - about 0.6 km, and one of the exhibition zones deals with its work.