Fermilab talks, tours and art open to the public this fall

Curious what goes on inside Fermilab, the national physics lab in Batavia? This fall and winter the lab has free talks, guided tours and an art gallery open to the public. Here is what is on its official calendar as of Nov. 9, 2026.

The Arts and Lecture Series: nothing posted yet

Fermilab's Arts and Lecture Series is the lab's long-running program of concerts and evening lectures. Right now its Arts Series, Lecture Series and Gallery Chamber Series pages list no upcoming events, and the series' online box office says nothing is on sale. The series page says lectures usually cost $8 and are general admission on Friday evenings at 7:30 p.m. in Ramsey Auditorium, but no new dates have been announced. To hear about new dates first, the series offers an email newsletter, and the box office phone is 630-840-ARTS (2787).

Free colloquium talks on Wednesday afternoons

The Fermilab Colloquium brings in speakers on science topics. The lab says most colloquia are open to the public and are held in Wilson Hall, One West, unless noted. Some talks are aimed at a broad scientific audience and others at general audiences, so check each listing. Upcoming dates on the public calendar, all at 3:30 p.m.:

• Nov. 18: Harnessing Quantum Sensors to Search for Dark Matter, with Daniel Baxter of Fermilab. Listed as open to the public.
• Dec. 2: Quantum Sensing and Information Processing for High Energy Physics, with Aaron S. Chou of Fermilab and the University of Chicago.
• Dec. 9: Muons, with Diktys Stratakis of Fermilab. Listed as open to the public.

Guided public tours

Fermilab's free two-hour public tours start in the Wilson Hall atrium and include the second-floor Art Gallery, the 15th floor view of the campus and a look into the Main Control Room. Remaining 2026 dates are Monday, Nov. 16, and Monday, Dec. 14, from 10 a.m. to noon, with another on Jan. 25. Tours are for ages 10 and up, and kids 10 to 17 need an adult. Registration is required and closes at noon the Wednesday before the tour, or sooner if it fills.

The art gallery and science center

The Fermilab Art Gallery on the second floor of Wilson Hall is showing A Quantum World through Nov. 30. In December, the lab plans ORIGIN, a photo series by 2026 Guest Artist Eleftheria Lialios that pairs historic bubble chamber tracks with modern detector images. The gallery is open weekdays, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Lederman Science Center has hands-on exhibits for all ages, including a new one on how interferometers work. It is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and closed weekends and lab holidays.

Before you go to Fermilab

Everyone 18 and older, including people on foot or bikes and adult passengers in cars, must show a physical REAL ID-compliant license or a passport at the gate. Public visitors enter at Pine Street in Batavia or the Batavia Road entrance in Warrenville. The grounds are open dawn to dusk. Wilson Hall and the Lederman Science Center close for Thanksgiving, Nov. 26 and 27, the afternoons of Dec. 24 and Dec. 31, Christmas Day and New Year's Day.