New England Aquarium
 New England Aquarium plaza | |
| Date opened | June 20, 1969 |
|---|---|
| Location | Boston, Massachusetts, USA |
| Coordinates | 42°21′32.46″N 71°3′2.46″W / 42.3590167°N 71.0506833°WCoordinates: 42°21′32.46″N 71°3′2.46″W / 42.3590167°N 71.0506833°W |
| Number of animals | 20,000 |
| Number of species | 600 |
| Annual visitors | 1.3 million |
| Memberships | 18,000 [1], AZA, AAM |
| Website | www.neaq.org |
The New England Aquarium, in Boston, Massachusetts, is one of the most prominent and popular public aquariums in the United States. Founded in 1969 on the city's waterfront, it is considered one of the first modern public aquariums and is credited with revolutionizing the modern aquarium experience for visitors through its emphasis on a more natural setting for aquatic life. With a mission “to present, promote and protect the world of water,” it remains one of the few such institutions with commitments to research and conservation as well as education and entertainment.
In addition to the main aquarium building, attractions at the New England Aquarium include the Simons IMAX Theatre and the New England Aquarium Whale Watch, which operates from April through November. More than 1.3 million people visit the aquarium and theatre each year.
The New England Aquarium’s initial conceptual design, architecture and exhibit design (opened in 1969), was led by Peter Chermayeff of Peter Chermayeff LLC while at Cambridge Seven Associates.
History
Planning for the aquarium began in 1962, with the principal designer being Peter Chermayeff of Cambridge Seven Associates. The building was opened to the public in 1969. The Giant Ocean Tank opened in 1970, and at the time was the largest circular ocean tank in the world.
The new West Wing was completed in 1998 by Schwartz/Silver Architects. The glass and steel addition includes the harbor seal exhibit on the public plaza, ticketing booth, changing exhibit galleries, gift shop, cafe, and lobby.
The West wing was completed in 1998. This expansion allows the aquarium to house larger temporary exhibits, and also includes a gift shop and cafe.
In 1999 the aquarium opened a new rehabilitation center for harbor porpoises in Duxbury, Massachusetts. The facility includes a 29,000-US-gallon (110,000 l; 24,000 imp gal) rehabilitation tank that can house three porpoises at a time.
The Matthew and Marcia Simons IMAX® Theatre opened in 2001, in a separate building designed by E. Verner Johnson and Associates. The 6 story high screen and its projector can show both 2D and 3D movies.
In 2003 the aquarium opened Amazing Jellies, a $1.9 million, twelve tank jellyfish exhibit exhibit emphasizing that jellyfish are survivors and are actually likely to increase with climate change.
In 2006, the aquarium earned full accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
In 2009, the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center opens. This open-air exhibit lets visitors view the aquarium's Northern fur seals.
Exhibits
Located in the central open atrium of the main building, the principal feature of the Aquarium is the Giant Ocean Tank, a cylindrical 200,000-US-gallon (760,000 l) tank simulating a Caribbean coral reef. This tank houses sharks, sea turtles, stingrays, eels, barracuda, and many smaller reef-living fish. Open at the top, the concrete tank is surrounded by a walkway that spirals down, allowing visitors access to 52 windows that offer views of the reef from every angle and level.
At the bottom, the tank stands in a large, square 150,000-US-gallon (570,000 l) penguin exhibit, hosting African penguins, Northern and Southern rockhopper penguins and little blue penguins. The penguin exhibit can be seen from the spiral walkway of the central tank or from elevated viewing areas that completely surround the perimeter. The penguins live on several artificial rock islands in the exhibit.
Surrounding the atrium are three levels of smaller exhibits including:
In front of the Aquarium is a harbor seal exhibit. It can be seen for free without going into the building. Seven Northern fur seals are on exhibit behind the Aquarium in the open-air New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center on the harborside terrace, which opened in 2009 with views of Boston Harbor. All the New England Aquarium's marine mammals participate in daily training sessions that are open for public viewing and participation.
The Amazing Jellies exhibit features moon jellies, sea nettles, upside-down jellies, Palauan Lagoon jellies and Australian spotted jellies, all from diverse habitats around the world.
Special exhibits
- Penguin Power
Focusing on the aquarium's penguins in 2010, this theme helped show off the natural powers of penguins. Visitor learned how penguins survive in the wild and how to protect them.
- Move It! Marine Mammals in Motion
Coinciding with the opening of the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center in 2009, Marine Mammals In Motion highlighted the athleticism of the Aquarium's Northern fur seals and Atlantic harbor seals. A program pathway encouraged kids to be active with calf stretches, dancing, spinning and jumping. The Marine Mammal Center also draws connections between marine mammals and humans and points out the challenges marine mammals face in our oceans today.
- Turtles Uncovered
In this 2008 exhibit, visitors learned that turtles and tortoises have lived on Earth for about 300 million years, long before the dinosaurs were around, but now some turtles are faced with the threat of extinction due to pollution, habitat loss and global climate change.
A temporary touch tank in 2008, home to southern stingrays, cownose rays, yellow stingrays and coral catsharks, let visitors feel their skin and get close views of them swimming and feeding. This is being replaced by a permanent exhibit n April 2011.
- Killer Instincts
This special program in 2007 helped visitors learn about the animals that we fear the most. The special program included an interactive passport program along with live animal presentations and a large-format, high definition shark video. Underwater dinosaurs appeared in 3D at the Simons IMAX Theatre in Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure. Featured animals included the sand tiger shark, anaconda, great barracuda, electric eel, lionfish, moray eel, giant Pacific octopus and southern stingray.
Location
The New England Aquarium is on Central Wharf along Atlantic Avenue in Boston and adjacent to Long Wharf and the Rose Kennedy Greenway. The nearest subway stop is Aquarium Station on the MBTA's Blue Line, but the aquarium is a short walk from the Haymarket Station on the Orange and the Green Lines. The Aquarium is within walking distance of the North End, Government Center, and the Financial District.
Conservation
The aquarium staff often participates in rescue efforts for stranded marine mammals and sea turtles.
Cancelled Expansions
In the late 1980's there were plans to sell the current land to build a bigger aquarium in the Charleston Navy Yard (Drydock #5). The project was to cost $150 million dollars and was to take up 278,300 square feet of land. Designs had the drydock to be flooded and at one exhibit visitors were 19 feet below ground. If it had been built it would have been the largest aquarium made at that time. The proposed aquarium was predicted to attract around 2 million visitors each year. However, the proposal to move the aquarium was cancelled in 1991, when neighbors of the proposed site objected it and when the aquarium couldn't make a reasonable amount of money from the Central Wharf site.
When the site movement was cancelled, the aquarium proposed to expand the current aquarium on both sides in 1992 (East wing expansion and West wing expansion). The East wing project would have been a 79,000 - 90,000 sq. ft. expansion costing $43 million dollars including a 1.1 million gallon Gulf Stream Exhibit. Also it included a 20ft x 30 ft window of the new 550,000 gallon Gulf of Maine Exhibit. It was proposed to be finished in 2004, but was cancelled in after 9/11 due to the attendance dropping due to fear of bombing of crowd areas, the Big Dig project closing the Aquarium T stop, and the rising cost of the project up to $125 million. In order to pay back the money they raised, they had to have major cuts ($1.4 millions in debt), causing the aquarium to lose its accreditation in 2003. [2] However, now the aquarium is back on track financially and is doing very well.
The future
As of April 2011, the Trust Family Foundation Shark and Ray Touch Tank will open in the West Wing. At 25,000 US gallons (95,000 l), it will be the largest on the east coast. Some of the species it will include are cownose rays, yellow rays and . It is a permanent exhibit that will allow for more interaction between the animals and the visitors.
Cambridge Seven Associates is working with the museum on upgrades to the Giant Ocean Tank, as well as creating other exhibits.
Notes
External links
Media related to New England Aquarium at Wikimedia Commons
- Official website
Retrieved from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_England_Aquarium
