Sant Ocean Hall

There are a few reasons why I ventured to the Smithsonian Natural History Museum's Sant Ocean Hall this week.  The first reason is perhaps the most obvious -- the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is on everyone's mind and in the news.  I love the ocean, even if its a Gulf I've never been to, and the Gulf of Mexico has always experienced various environmental problems.  The most common has been a fish kill.  Another reason I went to Sant Ocean Hall was because Ocean Day is Monday June 7th, and I was due for a nod to the ocean, even if not to a real ocean.  I also thought it was time to cross the Potomac for anothter blog article, Washington DC has plenty to offer!
So, this week's blog is about the Sant Ocean Hall at the Smithsonian.  Even though it was a Sunday mid-day when I went, parking on the street was a cinch.  I walked half way down the green between the parallel sets of museums to enter the Natural History Museum, and went straight back to the Sant Ocean Hall.  My first observation was the large number of children in the Ocean Hall -- there was no actual sand to play with, but curiosity for the ocean thrived.  The next thing I noticed was the huge whale hanging from the ceiling!  I decided to walk around the room to see what the museum had to offer.
The Ocean Hall seemed to provide the same kind of information as a website for children, providing information such as: what lives under the beach towel, is the ocean floor flat, and does ocean water ever stop moving.  One important display was: does the ocean health affect me.  This is one question and answer that many people probably haven't asked, but perhaps should.  The display indicates that half of the oxygen we breath is produced by the oceans.  We also all came out of the ocean!
I was hoping that there would be information on the Gulf of Mexico or oil spills, but neither was there.  The problem that the Smithsonian faces is that the Ocean Hall is so small, and the ocean, and information about it, is so large.  The information that it provides probably suits children quite well, and as for adults like me -- well, we'll have to search the internet for the information we want!
So, any resident or visiting adults that have children on hand who are curious about the ocean, this is the place for you.  The remaining adults can simply search the Web -- or visit one of the greater aquariums.  (I've seen the one in Washington DC, it's not worth the visit.  I can blog it if you want.)