KIRC Doors Open Milwaukee

The Kenwood Interdisciplinary Research Complex (KIRC) is a state-of-the-art facility for scientific discovery. Designed by Flad Architects and opened in 2015, the building was engineered to foster research that crosses traditional academic boundaries. KIRC blends highly advanced physical infrastructure with deliberate social architecture.

For Doors Open Milwaukee 2026, the UWM Department of Physics & Astronomy, the Center for Gravitation, Cosmology, and Astrophysics, Zilber College of Public Health, and the Milwaukee Institute for Drug Discovery will open the facility to the public.

Drop by the wlecome desk and explore the interactive exhibits in the expansive two-story atrium. Short, guided tours of the building's lab and collaborative spaces will be offered throughout the day. You can also attend one, or all, of the short talks presented by the Coffeeshop Astrophysics team.

Talk Schedule

During your visit, you can meet members of the team that first measured gravitational waves from colliding black holes with LIGO, research that earned the LIGO team a Special Breakthrough Prize and the founders of LIGO the Nobel Prize in Physics. Students and research scientists will be available to explain what happens in the labs and to tell you about their current research. We look forward to seeing you there!