The California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park located directly across from the De Young Art Museum is San Francisco's latest cultural attraction. The Academy - also referred to as the "Smithsonian of the West"- is one of the ten largest museums of natural history in the world and one of the oldest in the United States. Its mission is to explore, explain and protect the natural world. After three years of construction the new facility opened its doors on September 27, 2008.

Green Design as a Work of Art

The old Academy's buildings were damaged significantly in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. The renowned Italian architect Renzo Piano designed a modern green building that blends into its park surroundings with a living roof as its most novel feature. From a distance the roof top looks a bit like a space station as it camouflages the steel and glass underneath. Inside, the museum is very light and airy. Floor-to-ceiling walls of glass allow visitors to see the park outside from almost any point inside the building.

Spectacular Exhibits at California Academy of Sciences

From the rain forest to a virtual tour of the solar system in the new Morrison Planetarium, the Academy offers a variety of exhibits and 38,000 live animals under one roof to teach visitors about the natural world. The 400,000 square-foot structure is divided into four venues. A 65-foot tall indoor rain forest under a huge dome, a 2,5 acre wildflower meadow planted on the roof, an aquarium with 2,000 tropical fish in the world's deepest living coral tank, a 300-seat planetarium with a 75-foot projection screen and the new African Hall with dioramas from the original museum.