Birch Aquarium Announces Meditation Ocean: Aquarius Reef Base
Meditation Ocean Constellation installation opens this November
Still courtesy of Meditation Ocean Constellation
La Jolla, CA (October 6, 2025)—Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego is excited to announce its next exhibition, Meditation Ocean: Aquarius Reef Base, opening November 20. This multi-sensory art and science installation reimagines the historic Aquarius Reef Base — the world’s only undersea research habitat — as a meditation space inspired by life beneath the ocean. The exhibition was created by artist Hope Ginsburg and the Meditation Ocean Constellation, a collaborative group of artists, writers, educators, meditators, musicians, curators, divers and scientists.
Step through a portal into the underwater research station and experience life as the aquanauts did. Explore projections filmed at the original platform, wander through simulated underwater spaces and step inside a recreation of aquanauts' living quarters — all accompanied by ambient reef sounds and playful design that invite reflection on our connection to the ocean.
“Aquarius Reef Base stands on the shoulders of audacious experiments like the Navy’s SEALAB and Jacques Cousteau’s Conshelf, when humans first tested the idea of living for days or weeks beneath the surface of the ocean,” said Megan Dickerson, Director of Exhibits at Birch Aquarium. “Today, as our ocean and our world face unprecedented change, Meditation Ocean: Aquarius Reef Base invites us to return to that boldness, this time to cultivate resilience, presence and a deeper connection to the changing life around us.”
Included with the exhibition is “Meditation Reels from M.O. Turtlegrass Meadow,” a three-channel video installation. Shot over four days in Biscayne National Park in the Florida Keys by the Meditation Ocean Constellation, the work captures eight meditating scuba divers as they “breathe with” ocean wildlife, rising from the seabed to float in meditation. Prerecorded scripts allow guests to join the divers in meditative practice within the installation.
Meditation Ocean: Aquarius Reef Base replaces Embodied Pacific: Ocean Unseen, which opened in October 2024, as part of Getty initiative PST ART.
Meditation Ocean: Aquarius Reef Base is included with general admission. Birch Aquarium opens daily at 9 a.m. with closing hours varying by day. Purchase tickets online in advance for the best pricing or buy an annual membership to visit the aquarium all year. Visit aquarium.ucsd.edu for details including the Daily Schedule.
About Birch Aquarium at Scripps
Birch Aquarium at Scripps is the public exploration center for Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego. Perched on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Birch Aquarium features the groundbreaking work of Scripps Oceanography and UC San Diego scientists as well as conservation breeding programs and interactive exhibits. Birch Aquarium’s mission is to connect understanding to protecting our ocean planet, which it achieves through engaging hands-on learning opportunities for more than 500,000 guests and 40,000-plus pre-K-12 students each year. Visit aquarium.ucsd.edu for more information.