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 Tuesday, January 10, 2012 Celebrating 20 Years:Birch Aquarium at Scripps Offers Half-Off Admission to San Diego County Residents Special 20th anniversary deal valid on the 20th of each month through September 2012 Scripps Institution of Oceanography / University of California, San Diego  Gray Whale Fountain at Birch Aquarium. The special deal is valid for residents living in zip codes 91901-92199. Visitors must show a valid ID with the zip code to receive the offer (limit two children per paid adult; cannot be combined with other offers). Regular admission is $14 for adults, $9.50 for children ages 3-17 and $10 for seniors. Children under age 3 are free. "We are very grateful to the San Diego community for embracing the aquarium and its mission over the last two decades," said Nigella Hillgarth, aquarium executive director. "We're offering half-off admission as a way to say thank you to residents and invite them to rediscover our fantastic facility." Scripps Oceanography has dedicated itself to maintaining a public aquarium since its inception in 1903. Birch Aquarium at Scripps opened in September 1992 along Expedition Way, replacing the Scripps Aquarium-Museum, which operated for four decades near Scripps Pier. Native San Diegans often recall visiting the facility when they were school children. The new $14 million facility, named in honor of the Delaware-based Stephen and Mary Birch Foundation, a nonprofit organization that granted $6 million for the aquarium's redesign, was three times larger than its predecessor and became a testament to the breadth of Scripps research explorations and the institution's commitment to sharing ocean and earth science discoveries with the public.  Giant kelp forest tank under construction in early 1992. Today, visitors can explore more than 60 marine tanks - up from 36 on opening day - teeming with fishes, corals and invertebrates from the chilly waters of the Pacific Northwest to the warm currents of the tropical seas. A showcase 70,000-gallon tank houses a forest of gently swaying kelp, treating visitors to a serene view of a complex marine community that flourishes off the San Diego coast. In addition to marine-life exhibits, the aquarium showcases ocean and earth science in its interactive, award-winning museum. Boundless Energy, the aquarium's newest exhibit, opened last summer. This outdoor, interactive playground - celebrating ways we can harness clean energy from the planet - is a natural extension of Feeling the Heat: The Climate Challenge, an adjacent exhibit that presents the science of global climate change. Birch Aquarium at Scripps is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which ensures that rigorous standards are upheld onsite for animal care, education, wildlife and conservation in exhibits and programs.  A young visitor discovers the kelp forest at Birch Aquarium. Location: 2300 Expedition Way, La Jolla, Calif. Phone: 858-534-3474 Website: http://aquarium.ucsd.edu Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily Admission: $14 Adult, 18+ $10 Senior, 60+ $9.50 Youth, 3-17 Free Children, 2 and under Free Aquarium Members Directions: From Interstate 5, exit at La Jolla Village Drive. West one mile. Left on Expedition Way. Parking: Birch Aquarium offers three-hour courtesy parking. # # # Note to broadcast and cable producers: University of California, San Diego provides an on-campus satellite uplink facility for live or pre-recorded television interviews. Please phone or e-mail the media contact listed above to arrange an interview.
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