Beat the heat with these Ottawa museum exhibitions
4 Minute Read
For many, summer means school is out, and it’s time to plan for some fun in the sun. But, on those warm days in the height of summer, being out in the sun is the last thing you may want to do.
Finding fun and engaging summer activities that are indoors is not always easy. But, thanks to these Ottawa museum exhibitions, the whole family can enjoy these activities while they beat the heat. Museums are a great way to keep cool during summer’s hottest days and to learn something new as a family.
Ready to beat the heat this summer? Check out these recent exhibitions at Ingenium museums in Ottawa.
Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste – The Canada Science and Technology Museum
Alyshia McCabe | CAA North & East Ontario
Get ready to explore one of the world’s most misunderstood, fascinating, and limitless resources—human waste.
Fun for the whole family, Oh Crap! allows visitors to learn about the resourcefulness of poop. Discover the over 200 collector’s pieces, unusual objects and contemporary items related to human waste. You can witness the evolution of bathrooms from Ancient Rome to the modern comfortable Japanese toilet and every bathroom in between.
Did you know that human waste can be re-used as a sustainable resource? The exhibition allows visitors to ponder if human waste must be wasted. You can learn all about waste management and sanitation around the world.
Alyshia McCabe | CAA North & East Ontario
Test your knowledge and video game skills in the CACArcade, which features twists on classic arcade games, with poop in mind, like “CACA-man.” Oh Crap! combines fun and learning about your gut health and human waste worldwide.
Alyshia McCabe | CAA North & East Ontario
You can even learn what your latest movements say about your health with the Bristol Stool Chart. Don’t forget to leave a souvenir in the museum’s Fart Room and receive an analysis of your gas.
Curated and developed by the Musée de la Civilisation du Québec, Oh Crap! Is on at the Canada Science and Technology Museum until January 5, 2025.
The Cold War – The Canada Aviation and Space Museum
Alyshia McCabe | CAA North & East Ontario
The Canada Aviation and Space Museum has added a new permanent exhibition focusing on The Cold War and its impacts on Canadians and the Royal Canadian Air Force.
The new exhibition covers the intriguing years from 1945 to 1991 and dives into the tense Cold War era. It features fascinating flight suits, remarkable aircraft artifacts, and even a replica fallout shelter.
Marked by years of international tensions, the threat of nuclear attack, and espionage, The Cold War was a time of technological advances and social change.
Alyshia McCabe | CAA North & East Ontario
The exhibition also focuses on the impact of the Cold War on Canadians and the looming threat of a nuclear attack, from radar stations meant to detect an incoming invasion to a recreated basement fallout shelter based on plans distributed to the public.
You can take a digital journey to a Distant Early Warning Line Station, part of a series of radar warning stations that span the Arctic from Alaska to Iceland. You can also walk through a replica fallout shelter stocked for a two-week stay and built following the plans distributed to Canadians.
You can try your hand at being a spy and work to decipher encrypted messages, learning about the roles of spies and espionage from the Cold War.
Alyshia McCabe | CAA North & East Ontario
See iconic flight suits like the teddy bear suit, designed to keep pilots warm in cold weather. Also on display is the flight suit worn by Canada’s first female flight engineer, Cheryl Tardif. The exhibition also focuses on advocacy and equality in the RCAF throughout the Cold War years, highlighting the rise of women as pilots and engineers. There is a special focus on telling the stories of women and members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community, telling the stories of the people behind the headlines.
Bug Adventure – The Canadian Museum of Nature
Megan Johnson | CAA North & East Ontario
Megan Johnson | CAA North & East Ontario
On the fourth floor of the Canadian Museum of Nature, you’ll find a larger-than-life exhibition. Explore the amazing things bugs can do while you get down on their level.
Bug Adventure, developed by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, will be on at the Canadian Museum of Nature until October 14, 2024. The exhibition was created in partnership with Weta Workshop, the team behind iconic film designs like Lord of the Rings and Avatar.
Wander through the exhibition’s decor that lets you experience the world from the view of a bug. This interactive exhibition lets you test your skills with games and activities. Plus, you’ll come face to face with bug characteristics like camouflage, flight, swarming and venom.
Did you know that bugs have inspired a lot of innovation for humans? Discover how bugs inspired experts to create things like nanotechnology, flying robots and more.
The exhibition features four themed bug chambers, each featuring giant, detailed models that highlight the survival instincts of certain insects. Adding a bit of Canada into the exhibition created in New Zealand, Bug Adventure at the Canadian Museum of Nature also highlights the bugs in our backyard. See live bugs native to Canada, like the Western black widow or the forked fungus beetle, handled by the animal care team.
Beat the heat with CAA
Did you know CAA Members save 25% on single admission tickets and 10% on memberships at Ottawa’s Ingenium museums? Members also save 15% on admission to the Canadian Museum of Nature. Just show your CAA Membership Card while purchasing your admission tickets.
