Long Night of Sciences Potsdam

Encounter Science — For One Night

The Long Night of Sciences is one of Germany's most popular science formats. Since 2001, research institutions in Berlin and Potsdam have been opening their laboratories, lecture halls, archives, and libraries to the public for one Saturday evening. In 2024, the Long Night attracted around 27,000 guests. The motto for 2026: "Science against Fake News, Conspiracy Theories, and Fatal Errors."

What's Happening in Potsdam

Potsdam, with its universities (University of Potsdam, University of Applied Sciences Potsdam, Film University Babelsberg) and its outstanding research institutions (Max Planck Institutes, Helmholtz Centre, Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics on Telegrafenberg, AWI, GFZ, AIP), is a significant location. On the Albert Einstein Science Park (Telegrafenberg), you can visit the Einstein Tower, the large refractor telescope, and climate research laboratories.

The Concept

You buy a ticket, take special shuttle buses between the locations, and put together your own program from over 1,500 individual events. From quantum experiments at the Helmholtz Centre to live CT scan dissections to discussions on AI ethics at the Hasso Plattner Institute — the range is enormous. Over 800 programs are curated specifically for children and young people: Children's University, hands-on labs, robot demonstrations.

Science Meets Democracy

The 2026 motto is more than marketing: it refers to the organizers' social ambition. The initiative sees itself as a contribution to science communication in an era of media disinformation — direct dialogue between researchers and citizens, mutual added value.