South west England science centre, At-Bristol, has announced that French scientist and executive director of the Exploratorium in San Francisco, US, Dr Goéry Delacôte, has been appointed as its new chief executive.

Delacôte is also a former chair of the French science museum, Palais de la Decouverte.

“At-Bristol is one of the top millennium science centres in the UK,” he said. “It is a young, flexible, dynamic organisation and my aim is to develop it into a European leader in exhibit design and educational media-based programmes in science and technology.

“At-Bristol will become the hub of a UK and European network of partner science centres, museums, schools and universities. We will also form an alliance with the Exploratorium in San Francisco, using the strength of both places to gain an even larger impact on the field of science education worldwide.”

Delacôte takes over leadership of At-Bristol from Professor John Durant, who will leave the centre this summer to take up a new role as professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and director of the MIT Museum in Cambridge, Massachusetts.