Science Expeditions

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courtesy UW Science Alliance

Participants at the 2020 Science Expeditions event.

Participants at the 2020 Science Expeditions event.

This annual spring event features open houses and free activities for all ages at many of the science-related facilities on the UW-Madison campus. One new spot on the list this year is Morgridge Hall, home of the School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences (soon to be relaunched as the College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence). Special events include the premiere screenings of History of a Life of Good Luck, a new documentary by local filmmaker Greg Jeschke about an important but largely unsung former doctor at UW, Frederic Mohs (12:30 and 2:30 p.m., April 12, Health Sciences Learning Center). Find a schedule and map at science.wisc.edu.

media release: Come explore UW-Madison – your public university – and experience science on April 10th – 12th. Interact with researchers, visit dozens of science venues across campus, enjoy Science Spectacular Shows, and try your hand at interactive Exploration Stations. From astronomy to zoology, UW Science Expeditions is the annual campus-wide science open house that connects you to UW people & places all year round. All events are free and open to the public.

NEW for 2026: Come tour Morgridge Hall, the new home of the Computer Sciences, Statistics, and the Information School (and future home of the College of Computing & Artificial Intelligence). Explore the public art, student spaces, and some hands-on activities. Student guided and self-guided tours available.

Get to know the people and places of your land-grant university as you explore Destinations for Exploration on campus all weekend long! 

Friday:

• Babcock Dairy Store
• Ebling Library (Hospital Food Historical Exhibition)
• Hasler Lab – Center for Limnology
• UW Biotechnology Center (Wisconsin Center for Origins Research)
• Washburn Observatory

Saturday:

• Arboretum Visitor Center
• Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences Building (AOSS)
• Babcock Dairy Store
• Botany Greenhouse at Birge Hall
• Chamberlin Hall (The Wonders of Physics)
• Chemistry Building (Open House and “Chemistry with Mr Jim & Bucky”)
• D.C. Smith Greenhouse
• Ingersoll Wonders of Physics Museum & Physics Open House
• Morgridge Hall Open House (School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences)
• Morgridge Institute for Research: Discovery Building (Exploration Stations & “Snoozeapalooza: The Science of Super Sleep!”
• Steenbock Library (The Life and Legacy of Aldo Leopold)
• UW-Madison Arboretum
• UW Biotechnology Center (UW MIA Recovery and Identification Project)
• Wisconsin Energy Institute (Exploration Stations & Open House)
• Wisconsin National Primate Research Center
• Wisconsin Science Museum

Sunday:

• Babcock Dairy Store

• Health Sciences Learning Center, School of Medicine & Public Health (Exploration Stations; Carbone Cancer Center Research and Science Lab Tours; History of A Life of Good Luck – film premiere and Q&A with filmmaker Greg Jeschke, 12:30 and 2:30 p.m. - more info below)
• Lakeshore Nature Preserve
• Rennebohm Hall, School of Pharmacy

2026 Highlights:

Six Exploration Station hubs featuring dozens of hands-on science activities.

Behind the scenes tours of research spaces ranging from the Carbone Cancer Center, to the Wisconsin Energy Institute, to the roof of the Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Science building.

Science Spectacular Shows including The Wonders of Physics (11AM and 1PM April 11 in 2103 Chamberlin Hall), Chemistry with Mr Jim & Bucky Badger, and Dream Detectives: Solving the Secrets of Sleep

Public lectures on topics ranging from How to Build a Habitable Planet with the Wisconsin Center for Origins Research to The Life and Legacy of Aldo Leopold with Professor Stan Temple.

Premiere screening of History of A Life of Good Luck, a documentary celebrating Dr. Frederic Mohs - the surgeon who invented the cure for skin cancer. Live Q&A with filmmaker Greg Jeschke following each screening.

Dozens of Destinations for Scientific Exploration including the newly constructed Morgridge Hall, future home of the College of Computing & Artificial Intelligence and the Wisconsin National Primate Research Center.

From astronomy to zoology, Science Expeditions is UW–Madison’s annual campus-wide science open house, connecting you with the people and places shaping the future of science—all year round. Best of all, it’s free and open to everyone!

A new documentary film is released by JDog Productions, LLC.  History of A Life of Good Luck premieres April 12, 2026.

Frederic Mohs is to skin cancer what Jonas Salk is to infection.  And while many people have heard his last name, Dr. Mohs has been largely ignored in history, until now.  History of A Life of Good Luck is the story of the Wisconsin man who invented the cure for skin cancer. With access to both his personal and professional writings, this film uses his own words to reveal how his upbringing and personality formed the physician who would make medical history.  2026 is the 90^th anniversary of the first Mohs Surgery and 100 years since Fred Mohs wrote a daily journal at the age of 15 and 16. That journal, a short autobiography and notes he wrote about his own health struggles late in life are among the treasures opened in this film. In addition, members of his family and former colleagues share their stories and memories of Dr. Mohs, adding a profound personal dimension to his world-renowned work. History of A Life of Good Luck documents the life and legacies of the doctor who lost half of his family to disease as a boy and went on to devote his life to saving people from one of the most common diseases of our time.  

You are invited to the public premiere at the University of Wisconsin Science Expeditions event on April 12. There will be two showings: 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., each with a question and answer session to follow with the film’s director. The auditorium is in the Health Sciences Learning Center at 750 Highland Avenue on campus.