The Living Seas Gallery at Birch Aquarium Is Open

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This story originally appeared in the winter 2025 issue of UC San Diego Magazine as “Making Waves.”

This summer, Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego unveiled its most ambitious renovation yet: the Adam R. Scripps Living Seas Gallery. 

Named in recognition of a generous gift from Adam R. Scripps Foundation, Living Seas replaces the aquarium’s Hall of Fishes. The renovated exhibition invites ocean enthusiasts to experience an immersive journey through 38 habitats uncovering the wonders of the Pacific, including the hidden world of the giant Pacific octopus, the biodiversity of a coral reef and the research conducted at the nearby Ellen Browning Scripps Memorial Pier.

“Living Seas sets a new standard for aquariums, with design at the intersection of art, science and technology,” says Harry Helling ’80, executive director at Birch Aquarium. “With interactive digital guides and an immersive design, Living Seas demonstrates the aquarium’s continued commitment to animal well-being, guest experience, science and climate communications.”  

Learn more at aquarium.ucsd.edu.