If you missed out on that summer beach vacation of your dreams, soon you will be able to learn about the mysteries of the ocean. A new exhibit centered on the oceans will open to the public at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History on Saturday.
The Sant Ocean Hall will open with a day packed full of speakers and entertainment relating to the exhibit. The day starts off Saturday at 11:15 a.m. with a performance from Halau O'Aulani, a Hawaiian performer, accompanied by acoustic music by The Aloha Boys and welcome ceremonies. A panel discussion, "Bringing the Ocean to Life: The Sant Ocean Hall," will begin at 1 p.m. During this panel discussion, people involved in the exhibit's creation will discuss the challenges of creating the exhibit. This discussion will offer a behind-the-scenes look at the details of the exhibit, an opportunity for AU students interested in the ocean or museum studies to get a deeper look into the background. Barbara Block, a Stanford University marine science professor, will then give a lecture about her use of electronic tags to track the sea travels of species such as tuna and albatross. The day's activities end with a book signing by Deborah Cramer, author of "Smithsonian Ocean: Our Water, Our World," which discusses her belief that all life depends on the ocean.
If you can't make it to the opening day, make sure to check out the Sant Ocean Hall sometime this school year. The display boasts 647 live marine specimens and models of ocean dwelling species, as well as state-of-the-art technology, allowing museum visitors to experience all that is the ocean. The exhibit will feature seven-foot-tall prehistoric shark jaws, a 24-foot-long giant squid in a fluid filled tank and a model of 45-foot North Atlantic whale. "Ocean Odyssey," a high-definition video made by renowned under-water cinematographer Feodor Pitcairn, will play on the walls above the exhibit.
Further inside the museum, a room-sized view of the informational film "Science on a Sphere" will be available for view on a 360-degree global display system, which uses computers and projectors to display information on a six-foot-wide sphere. A gallery focusing on the importance and beauty of coral reefs includes a 1,500-gallon tank full of an Indo-Pacific reef engulfing 74 live creatures to observe. Other displays include ancient sea mammals and a film detailing a deep-sea dive.
The museum also takes time to educate visitors about how human have used and influenced the diversity of the ocean. The "Living on an Ocean Planet" gallery features 30 "Human Connection" stories that describe different roles the ocean plays in people's lives, including a scientist, an industrial fisherman and a lawmaker. This gallery features a carved canoe - around 26 feet in length - that the Tlingit Nation bestowed on the museum. Nearby displays help convey how Native Americans heavily populate the Pacific Northwest, largely resulting from the wealth of ocean resources in the area.
The Sant Ocean Hall - named after well-known D.C. philanthropists Vicki and Roger Sant - is the only exhibition in the country devoted exclusively to a global view of the ocean. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration partnered to create the exhibit to create awareness of the ocean's history and of its great importance, according to a Smithsonian press release.
"The ocean is a vast ecosystem crucial to our existence, yet scientific and public understanding of the ocean is still limited," Smithsonian Museum of Natural History Director Cristián Samper said in the press release. "That's why the new Sant Ocean Hall, the most ambitious renovation in the museum's history, is so vitally important. It will greatly expand our knowledge of this extraordinary ocean planet we call home."
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