The Minhang Science Museum is located in Minhang District, Shanghai, and is an important district level comprehensive science popularization venue in the southwest of Shanghai. The total construction area of the venue is 5100 square meters, with an exhibition hall area of 3000 square meters. The venue was officially completed and opened in 2017, and a new round of upgrading and renovation will be completed in 2024. The focus will be on updating the artificial intelligence and robot themed exhibition areas, replacing a batch of mechanical and electrical exhibitions that have been in use for a long time, optimizing the flow of visitors in the exhibition hall, and improving barrier free visiting facilities. The venue serves the entire Minhang district and radiates to the southwest area of Shanghai. It is open to citizens for free and adopts an online real name reservation mode for entry. During peak holidays, the booking quota is often quickly filled.
The venue is divided into six sections: Basic Science Exhibition Hall, Artificial Intelligence and Digital Technology Exhibition Hall, Life Science Exhibition Hall, Children's Science Exploration Area, Temporary Exhibition Hall, and Science Popularization Innovation Workshop. The Basic Science Exhibition Hall displays a large number of classic electromechanical interactive exhibitions, covering acoustics, optoelectronics, and magnetomechanics, which can be operated by visitors for hands-on experiments; The exhibition hall for artificial intelligence and digital technology is a key area after renovation, equipped with robot interaction devices, AI sensory experience equipment, and digital interactive science popularization devices, keeping up with the hot topics of the digital age and explaining the basic principles of artificial intelligence to ordinary citizens in a popular way; The Life Science Exhibition Hall focuses on human science, ecological environment, and carries out life education; The Children's Science Exploration Zone is designed specifically for young children, featuring water powered games, building structures, and sensory science popularization exhibition items; The temporary exhibition hall regularly introduces high-quality domestic science popularization exhibitions, rotating content around themes such as aerospace, carbon neutrality, and marine science; The science popularization innovation workshop is equipped with maker tools and regularly offers public welfare courses such as programming, robotics, and scientific handicrafts.
Relying on the abundant scientific and educational resources in Shanghai, Minhang Science Museum has established deep cooperative relationships with local universities, research institutes, and technology enterprises in Shanghai. It regularly invites researchers to the venue to hold science popularization lectures and carry out a series of face-to-face activities for scientists. The hierarchical design of the study tour curriculum system includes differentiated experiential content for different age groups in kindergarten, primary school, and junior high school. A large number of schools in the region organize collective study tours. The venue takes into account both in venue services and popular science outreach. Popular science exhibitions and scientific experiments continue to be delivered to various streets, communities, and primary and secondary schools in Minhang, extending popular science services to residents' doorsteps.
As a district level science museum in Shanghai, Minhang Science Museum has unique geographical advantages and can easily connect with the resources of the Yangtze River Delta Science Popularization Alliance. It often collaborates with science popularization venues in surrounding cities to carry out joint science popularization activities. At the same time, the venue also faces common problems with district level venues in mega cities, such as huge crowds during holidays, frequent use of exhibitions, and fast equipment wear and tear. Therefore, the venue has established a high-frequency inspection and maintenance mechanism to inspect and maintain all interactive exhibitions after daily closure, ensuring stable equipment operation. The Minhang Science Museum is a key link in the grassroots science popularization network in Shanghai, responsible for providing scientific enlightenment for hundreds of thousands of young people in Minhang. It is an excellent example of the construction and operation of science museums at the district level in the Yangtze River Delta.
Shanghai Inertia Automation Co., Ltd. participated in the production of some interactive exhibitions and customization of core components at this venue.