OB’s Sea, Sand & Stars Exploreum open to visitors ‘til July 27
OB’s Sea, Sand & Stars Exploreum open to visitors ‘til July 27
The Steven W. Baker Sea, Sand, & Stars Science and Nature Center at Orange Beach Elementary School will be open to the public with a rotating schedule that includes guided tours, hands-on presentations and IMAX type movies in the planetarium Monday thru Thursday from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. through July 27.
Reservations can be made by calling 251-981-5690. A $4 per person minimum donation is appreciated, and an adult must accompany children in their party under 18.
The facility features a 6,000 gallon saltwater aquarium, 1,500 gallon marine life touch tank, 800 ft. nature boardwalk with a weather station, the planetarium, a microscope lab, a library and a gift shop.
Opened in 2007, Sand, and Stars has been made possible through generous contributions from Brett-Robinson Construction, the City of Orange Beach and the Baldwin County Board of Education. More than a decade ago the seeds were planted for a hands-on facility for island school students to learn about the natural resources of the area.
The idea soon drew the interest of several prominent business and civic leaders. With their help, the Sea, Sand and Stars interactive facility became a reality.
In addition to the beautiful aquarium with a large variety of gulf fish, the touch tank, the center’s 38-seat planetarium has a Digitarium Alpha II Projector, allowing visitors a real-time look through this amazing window into space. The center’s microscope laboratory allows students to get a closer look at marine life. Outside, an 800-foot boardwalk leads to four large outdoor gazebo classrooms where students learn about birds, In partnership with WKRG TV, there is also a weather station complete with measuring and monitoring technology.
Sea, Sand, and Stars features a computer technology room, complete with 30 computer work stations, and the facility is equipped to tap into the Hubble Telescope and allows visitors a real-time look through this amazing window into space.
The facility draws students not just from Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, but from all across Baldwin County during the school year. Currently the facility hosts more than 4,000 students per year. It was first opened for summer visitors in 2016.
Videos that will be shown in the planetarium include:
• Kaluoka’hina: The Enchanted Reef: Kaluoka’hina is the enchanted reef whose magic protects it against humans finding it. Kaluoka’hina’s colorful inhabitants have thus always lived in peace…until the volcano erupts, and the spell is broken. Now it’s up to the young sawfish Jake and his paranoid pal Shorty to restore the magic of Kaluoka’hina.
• Sea Monsters – A Prehistoric Adventure: Eighty million years ago, the American Midwest lay under a great inland sea where colossal creatures ruled the waves. The movie brings to life the extraordinary marine reptiles of the dinosaur age in both 3D and 2D in full dome.