The rest of the museum had exhibits ranging from local mastodons to health in space. In between we’ll see the War of 1812, whales in Bay of Fundy, and quilts. Come along as we walk along floors 2 and 3.
This mastodon lived in the forest of New Brunswick during the last ice age. Standing over 10 feet tall, these animals roamed the forests and migrated across North America as glaciers advanced and retreated.
This elephant-like animal was discovered in 1936 buried in the sediment of an ancient pond. Most likely it had wandered into a boggy area where it became stuck in mud. The trapped animal died, and its bones were preserved in the clay. It probably live in NB more than 70,000 years ago.
My hand by its foot shows how large the animal was.
And this is probably what the mastodon looked like when it roamed the land.
changes over thousands (millions) of years
This Permian mass extinction may have been caused by acid rain following a massive release of volcanic gasses (info from Wikipedia). During the next Triassic age, the plant world was dominated by seed-bearing trees and by ferns that formed the forest undergrowth. In the animal world, turtles, crocodiles, and frogs (amphibians) appeared. Early ancestors of dinosaurs also appeared; they walked on 4 legs, but some were adapted for 2-legged running like an ostrich.
Only small exposures of fossils from Triassic rock are found in southern New Brunswick. The Nova Scotia side of the Bay of Fundy also has a fossil site during the same age, and early dinosaurs are represented there.
Since reptiles don’t need to return to the water to breed like amphibians, they mark the beginning of them spreading out over the land. Footprints (that didn’t show up in a picture) are some 315-million years old and are the earliest evidence for the beginning of reptiles.
These fossils were found almost 1000 yards lower in the rock formation than were the skeletons that were found in 1859 and probably were made when reptiles walked across the muddy bottom of a dry riverbed.
planet Earth changes
Photographs from space show us what we already know about Earth; however, the Earth has always been changing. Over 4.5 billion years ago, plate tectonics shifted continents, uplifted mountains, and created new oceans. The surface we live on also has experienced dramatic changes as climates have swung from greenhouse to ice house and back again to greenhouse. Life on Earth has responded to new conditions on the planet’s thin skin.
Rocks in NB record only about a 5th of geologic time, but they include the planet’s most dramatic events.
The next exhibit (we didn’t take pictures of it because we couldn’t have done it justice) had a number of round shapes of the earth highlighting the changes on it over billions of years. All of this done before man was here.
famous march in War of 1812
We talked about this march in the Fredericton garrison post. British and Canadian forces in Canada held their own against the Americans during the campaign season of 1812 (nicer weather), but they knew a renewed offensive would begin in the spring.
Traveling by boat wasn’t possible on the St. Lawrence River, so reinforcements would have to come overland. On February 16, almost 600 men left Fredericton for Quebec City, 356 miles away. Once there, they were ordered on to Kingston on Lake Ontario, a march almost as long as what they had just endured.
This map shows this travel of these hardy men who were poorly clothed for the march, often hungry, and plagued with frostbite.
While barns and houses were available for shelter in populous areas, they would have to build their own camps much of the time. This picture illustrates the structures they would have built.
Regardless of which country you side with, this winter march in 1813 in snow and cold is one for the books!
whales
The baleen whales of New Brunswick are so different from the sperm whales on the West Coast and like the whale in Moby Dick. The whales in the Bay of Fundy are the northern Right Whales.
welcome!
Of all the large whales, the Right Whale is closest to extinction because of commercial whaling that has now been banned; only about 200 summer in the Bay of Fundy.
Adults average 50 feet long and weigh around 45 tons; they may live as long as 50 years. Norther Right Whales may be the largest animal in the animal kingdom.
What makes this whale different from the sperm whales that have teeth, these baleen whales have these long plates with attached baleen.
open mouth showing the baleen
The Right Whale has 225-250 plates on each jaw measuring up to 8 feet long. The fringe on the inner surface of each plate holds the prey. The whale swims through the water with its mouth partly open, and the food is caught on the baleen.
Instead of teeth, baleen whales have rows of plates hanging from the upper jaws called baleen. The mouth and baleen function as a straining device to filter food from the sea.
When engulfing, a whale takes a mouthful of water and strains it through the baleen. After forcing the water out of its mouth, the whale licks the food off of the baleen fringe with a large, fleshy tongue.
Looking out from the inside of the whale shows the inside of the baleen and the food the whale eats called krill. Patches of krill may be more dense than 1 million per 35 cubic feet.
Now back to the whale.
mouth of whale
and its skeleton
its rib section
and its skeleton
whale’s jaw bone decorated the front of this house
keeping astronauts healthy in space
Dangers in space include loss of gravity, radiation, and isolation.
Astronauts need to be in top condition before they go out in space. A whole team works with them while in space, and follow-up happens when they come back.
Dr. David Saint-Jacques had many careers before he became an astronaut in 2009.
The farther from Earth the astronauts travel, the more radiation they are exposed to that can lead, over time, to cataracts and cancer. They take special precautions to limit exposure and participate in research back home to improve protective measures.
Lack of gravity can decrease bone density, weaken the heart, and cause muscle loss. Vision problems and disorientation also can happen. These effects are temporary, but some can persist after a mission is complete.
bone loss
We can stay healthy here on earth because we carry our own body weight—but not so in space where “if you don’t use it, you lose it.” Astronauts can lose 1-2% of their bone density every month while in space. Brittleness increases their risk of fractures when they return to Earth or land on Mars.
Studying astronauts’ bone loss could lead to a better understanding of osteoporosis for so many here on earth.
Bone before and after a space mission. The bone on the right is much rougher and has larger empty spaces.
Exercising while in space is critical for these men and women.
a body rotating device being used while on the Space Shuttle Columbia in 1998
vision problems
Vision problems are caused by nerves swelling.
Yeah, this would be a problem in space!
mental focus
Staying alert and upbeat while in space is a real challenge.
While space travel is the adventure of a lifetime, the demands can be exhausting since astronauts typically spend 6 months with the same 5 people. The artificial environment is loud, making it difficult to sleep, and the time for relaxation is minimal. And there is the worrying about family back home.
They can have weekly video chats with families and receive care packages with small gifts from loved ones.
Extensive simulations and training exercises help them prepare for the stresses that they will face. In limited free time, they enjoy such hobbies as photography and music. Space agencies support their families, and important dates and holidays are celebrated on the Space Station.
As astronauts prepare for long-duration missions, they need to be as self-reliant as possible.
quilts
The last exhibit we saw was this quilt display of 12 flower-themed examples from the more than 400 quilts that the museum has.
These quilts were chosen to highlight the ingenuity, engineering, and creativity of their makers. They also document the transitions from traditional quilting parties to commercially available quilt kits and then to quilting guilds that see quilting as an art form.
Which one is your favorite?
Here’s my favorite.
I think I like it because of the scalloped edges. In person, the red is a vivid dark color.
As we left the museum, we saw this cruise ship shrouded in fog.
