The Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium is located within the Okinawa Commemorative National Government Park in Motobu, Kunigami District, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It was built on the former site of the Okinawa International Ocean Expo and officially opened the year after the expo ended. The aquarium is one of the largest in the world and a highly iconic tourist attraction in Okinawa.
The facility features a massive tank called the “Kuroshio Sea,” which holds up to 7,500 metric tons of water, making it the second-largest aquarium tank in the world. Along with other exhibition tanks, the aquarium has a total of 77 tanks. The exhibits focus on the marine environments surrounding Okinawa, including coral reefs, the Kuroshio current, and deep-sea habitats. Its most notable exhibits include whale sharks and manta rays, which were the first of their kind to be successfully kept in long-term captivity. The whale shark also serves as the aquarium’s mascot, and at one point, up to three whale sharks were kept simultaneously. As of the end of 2006, the aquarium housed around 750 species and approximately 28,000 marine creatures.
In addition, the surrounding area of the aquarium includes facilities such as a dolphin show arena, a sea turtle exhibit, and a manatee exhibit.
