Ends of the Earth: From Polar Bears to Penguins, is a 600m2 (6000 sq
ft) travelling exhibition and multimedia experience that takes your visitors
from one end of our globe to the other to explore the fascinating (and cold!)
worlds of the Arctic and Antarctic. Ends of the Earth explores the uniqueness
of the earth's polar regions, the current science being undertaken there, and
these regions as indicators of climate change on our planet.
Visitors will:
- Experience the challenges of the great polar explorers in The Explorers
multimedia theater.
- Become a polar bear, a muskox, or an Emperor Penguin and find out how these
animals are adapted to live in the Arctic or Antarctic.
- Build an igloo and test your response to cold.
- Walk and slide like a penguin!
- Understand the science behind Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis.
- Live the tales of the "Race to the Poles"
- Learn about the current and forecasted trends in polar bear populations
resulting from climate change.
Ends of the Earth: From Polar Bears to Penguins is organized by polar
geography. Visitors explore the Arctic, the Antarctic and the physical geography,
climate, and science that these regions share.
The Entrance
The exhibition's entrance prepares visitors for their expedition. The entrance
treatment includes image collages of the Arctic and the Antarctic. Signposts,
inukshuks, and rock cairns mark the route and blasts of cold air remind visitors
of the harsh conditions of the polar regions.
The Arctic / North Pole
Visitors explore the animal adaptations, the human adaptations, and the science
that is unique to the Arctic. Take the adaptation quiz and use real specimens
to find out which arctic whale uses its skull to break the ice and what sea
mammal likes to eat mussels. Take a garden tour of the Arctic to discover the
amazing adaptations of dozens of Arctic plant species. Test your own response
to cold exposure. Run animations of seasonal movement of the sea ice and understand
how climate change is affecting the snow, ice, animals, and people of the Arctic.
The Antarctic / South Pole
Pull on a penguin suit and walk and slide like a penguin! Learn what researchers
are studying about penguin behavior - their feeding, their family life and their
unique locomotion! Explore some of the exotic science research being conducted
in Antarctica - from deep in the ice to the heavens above.
Physical Geography and Climate
Where has the coldest temperature on Earth been recorded? What is the altitude
of the South Pole? Can you see the Northern Lights at the South Pole? Take the
North vs. South Quiz to compare and contrast the poles and learn about what
is common between the two.
The Explorer's Tent
Journey to the North Pole or South Pole through the eyes of the polar explorers
- Ronald Amundsen, Captain Robert Scott or Admiral Robert Peary. Listen to their
compelling stories of challenge and survival through archival photographs, video
vignettes, and journal excerpts.
The Ice Cave Theater
This is the tale of a polar bear and an Emperor Penguin, two species that are
linked by their mutual dependence on ice. The theater portrays their unique
behaviors and adaptations including the very real effects that the current global
warming scenario is having on their icy homes.
Web Site:
Online Marketing and Education Guide available at: http://sciencenorth.ca/media/m01eote/about-home.html,
Username: eote Password: polarbear
ADDITIONAL MATERIALS:
- Educational materials
- Marketing manual
- Operations manual
- Installation manual