Niels Bohr's Copenhagen: Physics past and future in Denmark

May 2025 – 6 days

Register for 2025 now at tours@newscientist.com and we will contact you later this year with confirmed tour details.

Join this fascinating tour that takes a deep dive into the scientific heritage of Copenhagen, known as the birthplace of quantum physics. Uncover a rich history of scientific developments not only from Niels Bohr, but from a whole host of Danish scientists, including Tycho Brahe and Ole Rømer.  

Today, Copenhagen is a bustling city with trendy markets, shops, art, natural spaces, impressive architecture and laid-back people. It was here that Nobel laureate Niels Bohr (7 October 1885 – 18 November 1962) founded the Institute of Theoretical Physics, now known as the Niels Bohr Institute, where the greatest scientific minds of the era – including Albert Einstein, Werner Heisenberg and Erwin Schrödinger – did pioneering work on atomic structure. Bohr claimed the Nobel prize in physics in 1922, before escaping Nazi persecution to the UK, then to the US as part of the British mission to help J. Robert Oppenheimer’s Manhattan Project in Los Alamos, New Mexico. 

Explore the institutes and sites where Bohr formulated his theories on atomic structure and quantum theory (as recently seen in the Oscar-winning film Oppenheimer). His impact on the modern world is vast and will be explored throughout this tour. Enjoy a day trip to ancient Roskilde – now a centre for sustainable energy research.

On the first three days of the tour, you will be accompanied by a guest speaker, Marcus Chown, author of Quantum Theory Cannot Hurt You. Marcus is a former editor of New Scientist, former radio astronomer and regular contributor on BBC Television and Radio.

DAY 1: ARRIVAL IN COPENHAGEN AND WELCOME DINNER

Arrive in Copenhagen and make your own way to your centrally located hotel.

In the evening, meet with the group, your local tour leader and Marcus Chown for a welcome session. Afterwards, enjoy a welcome dinner followed by the first of the tour talks from Marcus, which will cover a brief history of Bohr's research and an outline of the days ahead.

DAY 2: COPENHAGEN CITY TOUR, ROSENBORG CASTLE, CARLSBERG RESEARCH LABORATORY

Today, you will explore Copenhagen’s scientific heritage. Visit the Round Tower, or Rundetaarn, in central Copenhagen, where Rømer was first to prove that light travels at a finite speed. The tower was built as an observatory in 1642 and is unique due to its spiral structure. After this, you will continue to the observatory in Østervold, which was in use for 135 years and has a statue of astronomer Tycho Brahe outside.

Continue to Rosenborg Castle in central Copenhagen, which is a typical northern European Renaissance castle and is well worth a visit. The basement treasury holds some of astronomer Ole Rømer’s scientific pieces, along with Denmark's Crown Jewels.

After an independent lunch, take the coach to the Carlsberg Research Laboratory, where we will begin a walking tour of the Carlsberg district of Copenhagen, before finishing at the Carlsberg Museum.

Return to the hotel in the early evening, and you will be free to enjoy an independent dinner. 

DAY 3: NIELS BOHR INSTITUTE, COSMIC DAWN CENTRE AND THE NATIONAL SPACE INSTITUTE

Today you will head to the Niels Bohr Institute at the University of Copenhagen, where you will have a tour of the archives. The institute celebrated its centenary in 2021. Also at the university are the Cosmic Dawn Center and Dark Cosmology Centre. Research at the two centres focuses on the formation of the first stars and black holes, as well as gamma rays, dark matter, galaxies and neutrinos. Begin with a tour of the archive, which holds archival material relating to the life and work of Niels Bohr. This will be followed with a lecture given by Dr Sarah Pearson in Auditorium A, the original lecture hall where Bohr also lectured. Dr Pearson is an award-winning astrophysicist currently completing research into galactic dynamics and dark matter and will present some of her research to the group.

Afterwards, visit the Cosmic Dawn Centre (DAWN) and Dark Cosmology Centre of the University of Copenhagen.

After lunch, visit the National Space Institute at the Technical University of Denmark in the afternoon, where you will learn how the work of Bohr and his predecessors is being built on for the research of the future.

You will be free to spend the rest of the evening and have dinner independently.

DAY 4: HVEN DAY TRIP AND TIVOLI GARDENS

Walk to Nordre Toldbod, where you will take the ferry from Copenhagen to Hven.

Hven is an island located in the Oresund between Denmark and Sweden, and which has changed hands over the centuries. It was in Hven that Tycho Brahe built his two observatories: Uraniborg, which was also an alchemy laboratory, the first custom-built observatory in modern Europe, and Stjerneborg, an underground observatory.

After visiting the Tycho Brahe museum, you will be free to spend some time having an independent lunch and seeing a bit more of Hven Island, which has some typical Danish churches and beautiful coastlines. 

Return to Copenhagen in the late afternoon. Upon arrival, you will be transferred directly to the Tivoli Gardens with time to explore at leisure. It has a range of rides to suit all adrenaline seekers and your educational needs, nestled in a beautiful environment of cafés, restaurants, trees and streams. You may be lucky enough to see its impressive fireworks display in the evening. Return to the hotel after dinner. 

DAY 5: ROSKILDE DAY TRIP

Embark on a day trip to Roskilde. Once important as a Viking trading hub, Roskilde celebrates its past while also looking to the future, hosting a large sustainable energy and biotech research facility. You will spend today touring the Viking Ship Museum, Roskilde Cathedral and the harbour. 

Depart from Roskilde Cathedral and head to Sorø, where you will have a tour of Hauchs Physiske Cabinet. Adam Wilhelm Hauch was an 18th century Crown Equerry then Lord High Steward, who pursued his love of science through self-study and compiled a large collection of scientific instruments. Return to the hotel for farewell dinner. 

DAY 6: DEPART COPENHAGEN

After a final breakfast, you will be transferred back to the airport for your return journey.