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Wisdome Stockholm represents latest in sustainable development as nationally important STEM project set to open doors in Sweden

The soon-to-open Wisdome Stockholm at Tekniska Museet is the latest development as part of a national project to boost STEM activities and encourage sustainable construction methods across Sweden

Wisdome Stockholm opens to the public December 9

A national project created to boost STEM activities in Sweden and encourage sustainable construction is about to take its next step, with the country’s National Museum of Science and Technology - Tekniska Museet - about to open Wisdome Stockholm to the public.

To be inaugurated by Carl XVI Gustaf, the King of Sweden, on December 5, and then open to the public on December 9, Wisdome Stockholm is designed to test the boundaries of technological possibility both inside and out, with the building as important to the project as the dome theatre inside it.

Representing a significant expansion for the museum, a former car park is now home to the country’s third Wisdome, with the space also including a meeting hub and a café.

Standing 12m (40ft) tall and with a diameter of 22m (72ft), the dome has been designed by architects Elding Oscarson, who have created the outer shell, the fit-out and the space that contains the free-standing structure.

The project not only encourages STEM learning but also sustainable development practices   CREDIT: TEKNISA MUSEET

Inside, Wisdome features a 100-seat 3D cinema with 360 degree 3D projection and cutting-edge visualisation technology. The theatre, says the museum, allows “free movement throughout the entire universe”, with the latest images from NASA and ESA satellites among those to feature in its content.

To accommodate the dome, the exterior building is made almost entirely from timber and features a wave-like parabolic roof, which comprises a billowing checked pattern with five layers of wooden beams. These beams reach a span of 48m (157ft) without the use of any supporting columns. This involves around 20km (12.4mi) of LVL wood that has been supplied by Stora Enso and then bent and customised with exact precision to fit the design.

Swiss firm Blumer Lehmann, which specialises in timber construction, was selected alongside a firm specialising in 3D production and Norwegian construction engineer Florian Kosche for the project, which is seen as a landmark development for sustainable construction in Sweden.



“On the outside Wisdome is a spectacular building that pushes the boundaries of architectural possibilities. On the inside, it offers world-leading technology that takes you further away, up closer, and to greater depths than you've ever been before,” said the museum in a statement.

“Here, space becomes an interactive adventure where it is you who decides where we are travelling to, while also providing the opportunity to explore the latest research in the fields of the microcosmos, the climate and digital superpowers.”

The initiative forms part of a national project to build five interactive dome theatres that promote interest in science and is a collaboration between Sweden’s five leading science centres - Malmö Museum, Universeum in Gothenburg, Curiosum in Umeå, Tekniska Museet in Stockholm, and Visualiseringscenter C in Norrköping. The project also incorporates the involvement of more than ten universities and research facilities working with research, technology, application and didactics.