Georgia Aquarium
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Georgia Aquarium
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| Date opened | November 23, 2005 |
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| Location | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 33°45′46″N 84°23′41″W / 33.76278°N 84.39472°WCoordinates: 33°45′46″N 84°23′41″W / 33.76278°N 84.39472°W |
| No. of animals | More than 100,000 |
| No. of species | 500 |
| Volume of largest tank | 6.3 million US gallons (24,000 m3) |
| Total volume of tanks | More than 10 million US gallons (38,000 m3) |
| Annual visitors | 2.2 Million |
| Memberships | AZA |
| Website | www |
The Georgia Aquarium is a public aquarium in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. It is the largest aquarium in the Western Hemisphere, housing thousands of animals and representing several thousand species, all of which reside in 10 million US gallons (38,000 m3) of marine and salt water. It was the largest aquarium in the world from its opening in 2005 until 2012, when it was surpassed by Marine Life Park in Singapore.
Businessman Bernard Marcus credits his 60th birthday dinner, held at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, with inspiring him to build a great aquarium for Atlanta; his subsequent $250 million donation provided the bulk of the money needed to build and stock the new facility.
The Aquarium's notable specimens include whale sharks, beluga whales, bottlenose dolphins, and manta rays.
In November 2001, Bernard Marcus announced his vision of presenting Atlanta with an aquarium that would encourage both education and economic growth. After visiting 56 aquariums in 13 countries with his wife, Billi, he donated $250 million toward what was to become Georgia Aquarium. Corporate contributions totaling an additional $40 million allowed the aquarium to open debt-free.
Jeff Swanagan, the Aquarium's founding president and executive director until 2008, is largely credited with the creation of the aquarium, from the design of the structure to the procurement of animals for the exhibits.
The aquarium is in downtown Atlanta on land donated by The Coca-Cola Company, just north of Centennial Olympic Park and near the Georgia Dome, the Georgia World Congress Center, Philips Arena, and CNN Center. Its blue metal-and-glass exterior is meant to evoke a giant ark breaking through a wave. The world’s largest when it opened in November 2005, the aquarium encompasses 550,000 square feet (5.1 ha; 13 acres) of covered space; its exhibits hold 8,000,000 US gallons (30,000 m3) of fresh and salt water.
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