Smithsonian Institution
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The Ocean is important to all life, including yours. Join us.
Welcome to the Ocean Portal – a unique, interactive online experience that inspires awareness, understanding, and stewardship of the world’s Ocean, developed by the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History and more than 20 collaborating organizations.
You are among the first wave of visitors to the Portal, an experience which we hope will empower you to shape and share your personal Ocean experiences, knowledge, and perspectives.
The input you provide through feedback modules and comment boxes will help us to shape future Ocean Portal content and functionality. Like the Ocean, which is made of millions of marine species, your comments, questions, and clicks will help to bring the Portal closer to the vastness and variety of the Ocean itself.
Collaborator Contributions
A scorpion found in a mangrove. More about mangrove ecosystem can be found in our Mangroves featured story.
A small horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) rests on seaweed in Stage Harbor, Massachusetts. Atlantic horseshoe crabs can be found along the coast of...
Watch as Dr. Dallas Alston and a team of researchers study the effects of aquaculture at a fish farm near Puerto Rico. With careful planning and good daily practices, aquaculture can be part of a...
This photo shows just a small part of the cephalopod collection at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. Shown here is ...
In Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands, brown pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) nest at the top of a mangrove tree. Many other kinds of birds—as well...
Smithsonian squid expert Dr. Clyde Roper collaborated with National Geographic to attach this Crittercam to the head of a sperm...
How do right whales size up? North Atlantic Right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) are big, but they're not the biggest whales. That...
The distinctive form of a winghead shark, Eusphyra blochii, is revealed by an X-ray image. The shark's eyes are spread far apart, giving it...
Make the Connection
The first step in making a difference is learning about the ocean and how your actions have an impact. Keep reading to learn everyday...
A model marker applies paint to the life-size, meticulously detailed model of the North Atlantic right whale Phoenix which today is on exhibit in the Smithsonian’s Sant Ocean Hall in the National Museum of Natural History...
Brian Huber studies fossil organisms known as “forams” to learn about climate change in this video snippet from the ...
In 1874, Reverend Moses Harvey of Newfoundland bought a dead giant squid caught by fishermen. More about the giant squid can be found in our Giant...
