A Window on Science
Microscopes on the Move (MOTM) is an interactive, educational outreach program and travelling activity designed to make the world of microscopy accessible to students by bringing advanced electron and optical microscopes into the classroom.

A scanning electron microscope (SEM) has been adapted by the Key Centre for this purpose, and students can operate the instrument to collect images of the hidden world they are discovering.

An engaging program of hands-on activities and fascinating specimens enthuses students from kindergarten to year twelve. Children, teachers and parents discover the hidden secrets that usually go unnoticed amongst everyday items - the beautiful detail seen on the common poppy seed, poetry on our bank notes, the fine crystal structure in fossils that are millions of years old.

Alongside a suite of light microscopes, the high-powered SEM takes students deeper into the world of science, engineering and technology than can be achieved in the classroom. It allows them to observe the information tracks on a CD surface, the exquisite detail of a single butterfly scale and the internal structure of various common plants as well as many other specimens.

The MOTM program was created by the Australian Key Centre for Microscopy and Microanalysis (AKCMM) at the University of Sydney in 2000. It has travelled extensively throughout NSW as well as into Queensland and Victoria. In 2007, the MOTM van went on its furthest trip ever, visiting Alice Springs for the first time.

Bring Microscopes on the Move to your school
MOTM visits are limited from April to September of each year. Please contact Dr Peter Hines, ph. 02 9351 7561, or email p.hines@usyd.edu.au for more information and bookings.