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Bet you never thought you’d discover the secrets of the universe on your tram journey to work?

Well, this week it’s quite likely you might as physics brainiac professor Brian Cox shares intergalactic facts on Metrolink platforms and a special app transforms journeys into work by turning the vehicle into an interactive ‘Astrotram’.

Passengers can witness the wonder of tram ceilings turning into night skies of glittering galaxies by downloading the SciMan app and pointing their camera phone at interactive posters and banners which trigger the technology.

It’s all part of Science In The City week - seven days celebrating Manchester’s year as European City of Science and the EuroScience Open Forum. The app has been developed by the School of Physics and Astronomy at The University of Manchester, the University of Salford, the European City of Science programme, and Transport for Greater Manchester.

Among the insights that Cox shares are that the Earth shifts 45,000 miles around the sun in the time it takes passengers to travel from Bury to Victoria station in Manchester. Cue the jokes about delays...

The fascinating facts and the augmented reality app run until Friday, July 29, but on Wednesday and Thursday this week there’ll also be additional boffins on board to amaze travellers with science experiments on the move.

A group of ‘science buskers’ will hop on various routes between 9.30am and 11.30am, and again in the afternoon from 2.30pm to 4.30pm, plus there’ll be stands set up all day at Piccadilly station and Victoria station where people can try the pulsar twister chair and take a kind of infrared selfie.

The SciMan app can be downloaded through the iPhone and Android stores, and passengers are invited to chat about their experiences on Twitter by tagging in the @MCRMetrolink account and using the hashtag #Astrotram.

All trams now have free wifi, meaning everyone can join in the conversation and learn fun facts for free.

Dr Rene Breton, lecturer in astrophysics at the University of Manchester, said: “Manchester has a rich heritage of physics and astronomy discoveries ranging from Rutherford first splitting the atom, to Geim and Novoselov isolating the properties of grapheme.

“There is nothing like a tram commute to daydream about our Universe.”