You can’t go far without hearing about the oil spill disaster still unfolding in the Gulf, and it has been deeply disturbing to watch as gallons and gallons of oil are being pushed into that irreplaceable ecosystem each second. Because you are a friend of the National Aquarium, we wanted to share with you what the Aquarium is doing and to ask for your continued commitment and support.

Ocean City, May 13, 2010 – National Aquarium staff and volunteers were joined by community members on the beach in Ocean City, Maryland to help “Hastings” the harbor seal with his oceanic return! Hastings suffered severe lacerations to his front flipper, but thanks to months of rehabilitation by The National Aquarium’s Marine Animal Rescue Program (MARP), he was rescued, rehabilitated and safely released back to sea. The public can track his progress at www.aqua.org/trackhastings.html.

Baltimore (May 10, 2010) – National Aquarium leaders, joined by Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, the Environmental Protection Agency, partners and members of the business community, have unveiled plans for a publically-accessible waterfront park on its property on the Patapsco River. The once contaminated and underused property has been reclaimed through brownfield remediation work and is being transformed into an asset for the community and the environment.

Baltimore, MD– April 27, 2010–This June, the National Aquarium will present Dora & Diego’s 4-D Adventure, a new family friendly theatrical film and attraction based on Nickelodeon’s hit animated preschool series Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego, Go!. For the first time ever, families can see these popular characters animated in digital 3-D, with special effects that make the story burst off the screen. To kick off the new film, Dora and Diego costumed characters will make special appearances at the Aquarium on June 26 and 27.

(Washington, DC, March 28, 2010) — The National Aquarium, Washington, home to America’s Aquatic Treasures TM, is booming with new life! Families are invited to meet the newest residents of the Aquarium while exploring over 250 aquatic species around the country. The Aquarium’s intimate experience and exhibit design brings children face-to-face with baby alligators, sea turtles, stingrays and more.