The Qingdao Aquarium, located by the waters of the Yellow Sea, held a ceremony to celebrate its 80th anniversary on May 8, attracting participation of aquarium representatives from Europe, Canada and Japan as well as more than 80 domestic experts in the field.
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Qingdao Aquarium. [File Photo]
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The Aquarium, also known as Qingdao Marine Science Museum, was initiated by China's famous educationist Cai Yuanpei in 1930 and built in 1932, becoming the Asia's first ever aquarium.
The Aquarium features four ground exhibition halls, one underwater world and a series of featured halls with nearly 10,000 square meters of exhibition area. The 4A-level attraction registered 2 million visits in 2011 and enjoyed the reputation as one of China's important science popularization bases for youngsters, the Aquarium's Director Qi Jiguang said.
Xu Shanyan, President of the Chinese Association of Natural Science Museums, remarked that the Aquarium has targeted the public since its founding by helping them understand marine science and learn about the ocean.
On the anniversary, a series of science popularization activities were launched across thousands of square meters in Shandong Province, which is expected to benefit more than 100,000 people in the region.
