Maryland Science Center hosts sci-fi family weekend at Inner Harbor

The Maryland Science Center tried to pull Baltimore families back to the Inner Harbor Saturday with a sci-fi weekend built around Star Wars and Star Trek, turning a museum trip into a hands-on outing at 601 Light St. The event leaned on pop culture to make science feel less formal and more like a family plan for the day.

WMAR 2 News said the program featured hands-on activities for the whole family. That approach fits the Science Center’s larger effort to stay visible in a downtown that still competes for weekend traffic, especially from parents deciding whether to spend their time and money in the city center.

The museum has been spending heavily to keep that draw alive. In October 2024, the Science Center announced more than $10 million in enhancements over two years, including a new space-exploration exhibit, an expanded makerspace, upgrades to Dinosaur Mysteries and the demonstration stage, and plaza improvements. Leaders said those were the largest renovations the Inner Harbor institution had undertaken in more than 20 years.

Mark J. Potter, the center’s president and chief executive, has framed the work as part of a push to keep the museum’s content accessible, wide-ranging and relevant to the next generation of explorers and leaders. The center says it reaches more than 400,000 people each year at the Inner Harbor and through programs across Maryland, making it one of the city’s steady downtown traffic generators.

The sci-fi weekend also landed inside a larger anniversary campaign. The Maryland Science Center opened in June 1976 at Baltimore’s Inner Harbor as one of the first major attractions in the area, and in June 2025 it launched a year-long 50th anniversary celebration with a new brand identity, special events and exhibits. That lineup included a history exhibit opening June 13, 2025, and a kickoff festival called Best Day Ever on June 14, 2025. The schedule also included Mess Fest, Science Arcade and Music Under the Dome.

The institution traces its roots to the Maryland Academy of Sciences, founded in 1797, giving the weekend programming a longer civic backdrop than a simple fandom event. The Science Center has also extended free admission support for Maryland school groups through 2030, a move that reinforces its role not just as a tourist stop but as a place where local children and teachers can keep coming back.

For Baltimore, that matters. The Inner Harbor was built on attractions that could give families a reason to come downtown, and the Science Center is still betting that playful programming, not just exhibits behind glass, can keep it part of the city’s weekend economy.