Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center facts for kids
Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center
|
|
| Location | Santa Barbara, California, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 34°24′37.90″N 119°41′10.05″W / 34.4105278°N 119.6861250°W |
The Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center is a fun museum in Santa Barbara, California. It's also known as the Ty Warner Sea Center. This museum is all about the amazing ocean life in the Santa Barbara Channel. It also teaches us how to protect these creatures and their home. You can find it right on Santa Barbara's Stearns Wharf.
History of the Sea Center
The Sea Center first opened its doors in 1986. But soon after, a fire happened under the pier where it sits. This forced the museum to close for a short time. It reopened about a year later with new exhibits.
Some of the best parts from the original museum are still there today. You can see a huge, life-size model of a gray whale and her baby. There are also many aquariums and displays about ocean life. After many successful years, the museum had a chance to grow. It added more building space and bigger touch tanks.
The expanded Sea Center reopened in 2005. This big project cost $6.5 million. A local businessman named Ty Warner gave a lot of money for the expansion. In 2016, the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History changed its name. The Sea Center then went back to its original name.
Explore the Exhibits
The Sea Center has many cool exhibits to explore. Each one helps you learn more about the ocean.
- Living Beach: This is an interactive tide pool. You can gently touch and learn about the small creatures that live there. It's like exploring a real beach at low tide.
- BioLab: This exhibit shows the amazing biological life cycle of sea creatures. You can learn how marine animals, including sharks, grow and change. It's a great way to see how life works in the ocean.
- Wet Deck: This area focuses on oceanography, which is the study of the ocean. It has a special "moon pool." This open well lets you see the seawater right below the pier. There's also a theater with videos about the Santa Barbara Channel. You can also try out fun activities in the interactive science lab.
- Mammal Mezzanine: Here, you can learn about 36 different kinds of marine mammals. These are animals like whales, dolphins, and seals that live in the ocean. There's even an exhibit about how these amazing creatures communicate with each other.
