Sant Ocean Hall

Yesterday morning I got a preview of the new Sant Ocean Hall at the Smithsonian National Natural History Museum. The renovation of the hall was the largest in the museum's history, and opened up the 23,000 square foot space to it's original Beaux Arts design.

Much like the mammal exhibit, the museum made the Ocean Hall both beautiful and informative. There are 24 computer interactive stations around the hall that allow visitors to select videos, as well as touch stations for kids to explore.

At the center of the hall is a 45-foot model of a living North Atlantic right whale, named Phoenix. North Atlantic right whales are in endangered species, with only about 400 living whales remaining.

The exhibit opens to the public this Saturday, and it is really worth checking out. If you can't get there in person, you can visit the web site which has much more information. You can also see the rest of the photos over on DCist.