The Academy’s mission is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration. Every visit supports our work. The Academy’s mission is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration. …

Your Academy adventure starts here! Bundle Academy admission with 3 more top SF attractions and save 46% with San Francisco CityPASS®.; Visit for free all year long by becoming a member.; Discounted admission is available at the ticket window for EBT/CalFresh, WIC, Lifeline Pass, and Medi-Cal cardholders

Home to nearly 60,000 live animals, a star-studded 75-foot planetarium, and a lush rainforest inside a 4-story glass sphere, the California Academy of Sciences is a microcosm of our marvelous world—and no two visits are ever the same. Become a member to add science, wonder, and inspiration to your daily life, every day of the year.

The only place on Earth where you can visit an aquarium, planetarium, rainforest, and natural history museum under one roof, the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco is also a powerful voice for exploration, education, and sustainability.

Morrison Planetarium shows are fueled by cutting-edge scientific data, resulting in stunning visualizations of the latest observations, discoveries, and theories about our Universe.

A returning favorite from the original Steinhart Aquarium, the Swamp is best known as the home of Claude, the startlingly white Alligator mississippiensis that's become one of the Academy's most-famous residents. Go below for underwater, eye-to-eye views of Claude and the Swamp's other creatures, then explore surrounding tanks filled with fearsome-looking alligator gars and a fascinating array ...

Fault: A fracture in the rocks that make up the Earth’s crust. Epicenter: The point at the surface of the Earth above the focus. Plates: Massive rocks that make up the outer layer of the Earth’s surface and whose movement along faults triggers earthquakes. Seismic waves: Waves that transmit the energy released by an earthquake. Focus (Hypocenter): The …

SAN FRANCISCO, CA (December 3, 2024) — Submissions for the California Academy of Sciences’ 2025 BigPicture: Natural World Photography Competition will be accepted through March 1, 2025. In its 12th year, the competition focuses a visual lens on the extraordinary diversity of the natural world and aims to inspire action to protect and conserve it.

An interactive storytime about how humans are connected to each other and the natural world. Daily, 10:15 a.m. Learn about our charismatic African penguin colony from an Academy biologist. Daily, 10:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. Watch as a diver plunges into one of …

The first part of the Shake House experience takes you back to October 17, 1989, when the 6.9-magnitude Loma Prieta earthquake struck near Santa Cruz at 5:04 p.m. 63 people were killed, and damage was widespread throughout the Bay Area—including at the Academy.