Lancashire Science Festival: 28 pictures from the annual event held at UCLan in Preston

More than 10,000 visitors attended the free fun-filled three-day extravaganza in Preston, featuring explosive shows, workshops and interactive exhibits.

Among the highlights this year were the Rocket Show, with fireballs, explosions and a jet engine; This is Amazing Chemistry who held various demonstrations; and The Bird Man with his impressive birds of prey.

Centre-stage on the public day was a live stunt show that uncovered the science and tech behind extreme sports with demonstrations from elite, back flipping BMX riders.

People were also able to get hands-on with science through a variety of workshops including Playdough Surgery, Mighty Maggots, Hands on Healthcare, Touring the Solar System and Potted Prehistory.

It is the first time the Lancashire Science Festival has returned for both school and public days since 2019, bringing primary schools from all over the North West to the event before the public day on Saturday, 20 May.

Harris Primary School pupil Harry Burnham, 11, who practised steering in a UCLan racing car, said: “I love learning about anything science-related and want to be a physicist when I’m older.”

Public day visitor, six-year-old Alexander Dixon from Tarleton, said: “Today has been awesome! I held a meteorite and tested its iron levels using a magnet. It was much smoother than I thought it would be.”

The annual event offers a wide variety of activities to inspire youngsters about the real-world applications of science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine.

Dr Liz Granger, Lancashire Science Festival Director, said: “It’s fantastic to see so many people on campus again engaging with a wide variety of science, engineering, technology and maths (STEM) activities.

“This is the tenth year of the Lancashire Science Festival and it gets better each time. It has something to offer everyone of all ages and we take pride in inspiring the next generation who leave knowing that science touches our lives in many different ways and can be far more exciting than they ever imagined.

“We couldn’t run an event on this scale without an amazing team effort from all involved, with contributions from staff, students, volunteers, regional businesses and organisations, who made every effort to make sure our visitors left with smiles on their faces.”