Gravity Discovery Centre — Attraction in Yeal

Aboriginal Astronomy Night - Very Disappointing

I attended the Aboriginal Astronomy night with my two children and mother. I bought the experience as a birthday present for my mum visiting from the UK.

We were all very disappointed. The talk was all about the speakers family and life and how he has been affected by white settlement and his parents displacement from their land. He explained how much it had negatively affected him that his father had attended Sunday school and throughout his life had sung them Christian songs. He also stated it was a proven fact that the aboriginal Australians are the most spiritual people in the world, second to none, so not to bother going to places such as Tibet looking for enlightenment. I'm not sure how science can prove who is more spiritual. He also condemned the behaviour of aboriginal people you see in Northbridge and stated he himself had never claimed a pension or the dole.

He did touch on the creation story but it was a very abbreviated version that only mentioned the spirits briefly and the trees being formed. It was also disjointed as he went off on tangents talking about his uncle so it was difficult to follow.

There were no stories about the night sky or the constellations which was so disappointing as my children and I have heard many stories before on other excursions but this was an opportunity for my mum, as a tourist from the UK, to learn them.

The evening wasn't a complete waste of time due to the fantastic astronomers and astrophysicist that took over for the remainder of the evening. The manager, Rick, was a brilliant and charismatic speaker, who exuded knowledge and passion for astronomy. If I had paid for a 'Night Visit' experience I would have been very happy. Sadly we were there for the 'Aboriginal Astronomy Night'.

I would recommend giving this...

Gravity Discovery Centre

The Gravity Discovery Centre is an interactive science facility with a particular emphasis on gravity in all its forms—whether in the context of space flight, wave propagation, or Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity.

There are numerous hands-on exhibits, though unfortunately, some were not operational during our visit.

While the Centre features public displays, its primary focus is research—specifically into the science of gravitational wave detection. These waves, predicted by Einstein’s mathematics, remained undetected until 2015. The Centre itself doesn’t detect gravitational waves directly but instead contributes to research that supports other institutions in improving their chances of detection.

Compared to my visit a decade ago, the Centre felt a little dated. Perhaps I was expecting too much after the excitement of my first visit—or perhaps, having learned so much more about the subject in recent years, the exhibits no longer held quite the same thrill. I’m not entirely sure.

The Centre consists of four main areas: • The Discovery Hall – home to many interactive displays, • The Cosmology Gallery – which was freezing during our winter visit (and reportedly stiflingly hot in summer), • The Leaning Tower of Gingin – a 45-metre-high structure where you can drop water-filled balloons to replicate Galileo’s experiments (and enjoy spectacular views), • The Scaled Solar System Walk – a beautifully conceived outdoor installation. Be warned: Pluto is located 1.2 km from the Sun!

Despite some maintenance issues and ageing infrastructure, I still strongly recommend the Gravity Discovery Centre as a rewarding and thought-provoking day out—especially for those with a keen...

Wow, this place is great. We went Saturday evening. Arrived at 6.30pm, was greeted by a lovely gentleman at the counter who explained everything to us about how the evening would progress. Our tour started at 8pm. As we had time, we were issued with two balloon's each which we filled with water, one just a bit, one with a lot more, and then proceeded to climb the HUGE tower outside. When we reached the top, wow what a view, amazing, you drop the balloon's to see which one travels the fastest to the ground, interesting. There was an air collection point on the tower where the data goes to the university of Tasmania, and also a bee hive. 🐝 Before the tour you can also spend as much time as you like in the centre with all the experiments you can try and heaps of information. Great for kids and older kids, all hands on. You can also grab a bite to eat, a drink or an icecream from the cafe before your tour. When you start your tour with a talk and a screen display inside with an explanation of how it all began. The big bang, time, light, speed and more. By now it's completely dark with no light pollution. Amazing what you can see. Outside on the first part, with a walk to the outside.All of the staff are so knowledgeable and explained everything and encouraged questions. Then onto the telescope's. You really are filled with heaps of fun information. There is so much to see you could have multiple visits and there would still be more to learn. They have some weekend stays where you can bring your swag or tents and stay over. It's really good fun, and not only for the super star needs 🤣🤣 but also for anyone interested in a different fun experience. 5🌟 well worth at...