Raleigh's bilingual science celebration returns Saturday

What they're saying: "I always thought that art and culture go hand-in-hand with science," says Hugo Romero-Sanchez, head of statewide initiatives for the museum and a self-described nerd.

• Illustrations and paintings help scientists understand the natural world, while science fiction books and TV shows imagine future technological advances.
• "Art inspires science and science inspires art," Romero-Sanchez tells Axios. "This event is a celebration of the things that unite us."

Zoom in: The museum has a full slate of events for all ages Saturday.

• 🧑‍🔬 Try hands-on experiments on magnets, chemistry, archaeology and more led by scientists, engineers and artists from a wide variety of disciplines.
• 🦥 Explore the museum's replica of a Central American tropical dry forest containing living plants and a two-toed sloth, as well as butterflies, turtles, tarantulas and snakes.
• 💃 Watch traditional dances from multiple Latin American countries.
• 🪐 Learn how NASA discovers exoplanets.
• 🌮 Order from a secret menu at the museum's two restaurants.
• 🎨 Tour a special art exhibit curated for the event.

Flashback: This is the third year Día de la Ciencia y la Cultura has been held at the Museum of Natural Sciences.

• It originated 10 years ago as a smaller celebration put on by the Mexican Consulate in Raleigh and the local chapter of RedGlobalMX. Both organizations remain partners.

If you go: The free event is Saturday, 10am to 5pm, at 11 W. Jones St.

• Explore all the activities

What's next: Mark your calendars for the museum's next big event — BugFest, set for Sept. 19.