Step inside the hangar where we keep NOAA’s hurricane hunter planes. 

Feed the fish at the nation’s oldest aquarium.

Sniff fish at a NOAA seafood inspection lab.

Meet an Alaskan red king crab.

Watch scientists command satellites in space.

Dive into an underwater sanctuary and more — all from home! 

Join us in March for a NOAA Live! Virtual Open House offsite link and “visit” just some of the places where NOAA science happens.

Each week, we’ll tour a different NOAA facility through a live webinar and meet the staff that bring NOAA’s mission to life. Our guides will highlight a few cool spots around campus and answer your questions in real time. 

These free events are geared toward students in grades 2 through 8, and they’re perfect for classrooms and families. 

*Registration is free, but space is limited. Click the links below to reserve your spot for the virtual tour(s) you’d like to attend:

View Recorded Webinars

March 3; 4-5 p.m. ET
150 Years and Counting: Studying fish, fisheries, and more at the NOAA Fisheries Woods Hole Laboratory and Aquarium
The village of Woods Hole, Massachusetts, is home to an amazing collection of marine science institutions. We’ll introduce you to the NOAA Fisheries Woods Hole Lab, "walk" down main street, explore a NOAA research vessel, examine fish ear bones in our lab, and go behind the scenes at the Woods Hole Aquarium.

March 10; 3-4 p.m. ET
From eyes in the sky to action on the ground at NOAA’s Satellite Operations Facility
Get a rare chance to come inside “mission control” at NOAA’s state-of-the-art Satellite Operations Facility in Suitland, Maryland, where we command NOAA’s environmental satellites and collect the bulk of the data from Earth and space observations. Learn what it takes to receive massive amounts of information in this round-the-clock operation and see how NOAA satellites help search and rescue teams save lives and meteorologists forecast weather.

March 17; 4-5 p.m. ET
Dive into Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary at the Sanctuary Exploration Center
Dive into kelp forests, explore the deep sea, come face to face with a leatherback sea turtle and listen to the sounds of animals underwater, all while virtually touring the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Exploration Center in Santa Cruz, California.

March 24; 4-5 p.m. ET
NOAA's Nose Knows: A day in the life of a Seafood Inspector
What does fresh, high-quality, safe-to-eat fish smell like? How does fish make its way from the ocean to your dinner plate? Come with us as we follow some of your favorite seafood off a fishing boat, into a processing facility and through the hands of a NOAA Seafood Inspector. Help us inspect seafood live from NOAA's inspection laboratory in Long Beach, California, and learn some tips and tricks for inspecting your dinner, too!

March 30; 3-4 p.m. ET
A Dive Into Daily Life at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center's Kodiak Lab
Come along for a virtual tour of the NOAA Fisheries Alaska Fisheries Science Center's lab in Kodiak, Alaska! Visit our touch tank and meet our resident critters. Dive into Alaska waters with our dive operations research team! We'll take a look at juvenile red king crab as we investigate the impacts of ocean acidification.

March 31; 4-5 p.m. ET
Science in the Sky: How NOAA's Aircraft Operations Center supports research from 500 to 45,000 feet
Want to fly with NOAA? NOAA's Aircraft Operations Center in Lakeland, Florida, operates and maintains 10 specialized aircraft to support NOAA research. Come learn about our team of NOAA Corps officers and staff who fly, instrument, repair, and support our crewed and uncrewed aircraft. Walk along the hangar floor, visit our calibration lab and metal shop, and see our aircraft up close!

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Stay connected for event updates

For the latest tour information, follow our Virtual Open House event host NOAA Woods Hole Sea Grant on Twitter and Facebook. You can also search under the hashtag #NOAAVirtualOpenHouse.