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Time Lapse Construction of the Smithsonian's Sant Ocean Hall

Smithsonian Institution

Watch the Smithsonian's Sant Ocean Hall come to life in this two minute time lapse video.

The Sant Ocean Hall is the National Museum of Natural History's largest exhibit, providing visitors with a unique and breathtaking introduction to the majesty of the ocean. The hall's combination of 674 marine specimens and models, high-definition video, and the newest technology allows visitors to explore the ocean's past, present, and future.

The hall is named for Victoria and Roger Sant and family, Washington, D.C., philanthropists and Smithsonian supporters, who donated $15 million to endow the new hall and related programs and outreach activities. The hall, which opened in 2008, is founded on the museum's unparalleled collection (the largest marine collection in the world, with more than 80 million specimens), allowing the Smithsonian to offer the most comprehensive exhibition in the country devoted to a global view of the ocean.

The Sant Ocean Hall was created in partnership with the Naitonal Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to show the ocean as a global system that is essential to all life on Earth. The exhibition refers to ocean in the singular because the ocean is one huge, interconnected body of water that spans several basins.