Chattanooga, Tenn. (May 19, 2025) – With Memorial Day already upon us, the Tennessee Aquarium is poised to help guests of all ages “find their joy” through fascinating wildlife experiences, engaging programming and life-like exhibits that celebrate the wonders of the natural world.
In the Penguins’ Rock gallery, nesting season is in full swing for the Aquarium’s flightless waterfowl. During their visit, guests may glimpse paired-up Macaroni and Gentoo penguins attentively tending to their eggs, and fingers and flippers alike are crossed at the potential arrival of chicks later this summer.
Two Gentoo Penguin couples — Carla and Bigfoot and Bug and Big T — are caring for a pair of eggs each while nearby neighbors Flower and Blue have one of their own. Macaroni Penguin, Merlin, is father to the most-recent addition to the colony, Lyda Sue, and he’s once again on egg-watch duty with Shamrock. Penguin eggs aren’t always fertile, but the penguin specialists are hopeful for a baby boom in the coming weeks.
Deeper into a visit to the Ocean Journey building, it’s hard to experience the beauty and expanse of the 618,000-gallon Secret Reef and not be brimming with questions. Fortunate guests may be lucky enough to have their curiosity satisfied during a Diver Chat. Led by knowledgeable Aquarium educators and conducted via specialized audio equipment, attendees to these programs will learn what it takes for humans to survive underwater from a volunteer diver speaking inside the facility’s largest exhibit. Diver Chat times will be posted on-site.
Gentoo Penguins Bug and Big T care for an egg in Penguins' Rock at the Tennessee Aquarium.
At the end of May, a large sculpture, created by Oregon-based artistic nonprofit Washed Ashore, will awe Aquarium visitors while simultaneously sounding the alarm about the proliferation of plastic waste in the ocean. As with all of Washed Ashore’s creations, Bill the Coho Salmon is made entirely of discarded plastic collected from beaches. Bill is a temporary guest of the Aquarium, but he joins another Washed Ashore piece, Stella the Seahorse, which is permanently displayed in the Ocean Journey building’s Island Life gallery. Trashy Trout, another colorful plastic art piece that was created by Aquarium staff and volunteers, can be viewed in the River Journey building.
Arriving just in time for summer, a freshwater mussels exhibit has been added to the River Journey building’s Ridges to Rivers gallery featuring several mussel species found in Tennessee’s Duck River. As they take in the beautiful colors (and funny species names) of the mussels, guests will learn about the abundance of these shelled animals in the Volunteer State and the critical role they play in the health of waterways.
Just across the street, the Tennessee Aquarium IMAX 3D Theater offers an exhilarating lineup of science and nature films, as well as a rotating slate of thrilling Hollywood films.
Soaring through Memorial Day weekend, the theater is offering an extended run of Blue Angels 3D, featuring stunning aerial footage and unprecedented glimpses into the training and team-building at the heart of the military’s elite flight demonstration squadron.
The Blue Angels pilots perform the Diamond Echelon Parade.
The Aquarium’s newest resident film, Elephants: Giants of the Desert 3D, takes viewers on a thrilling journey in the company of the world’s largest land animal, the African Elephant. Meanwhile, Call of the Dolphins 3D and T.REX 3D continue to fill Chattanooga’s largest screen with memorable stories of some of the planet’s most-beloved mammals and terrifying tyrants.
And if towering reptilian predators aren’t thrilling enough, fans of high-stakes drama can enjoy the action-packed conclusion to Ethan Hunt’s clandestine legacy in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning. The final entry in Tom Cruise’s beloved spy franchise will be offered (in 2D) through Memorial Day, Monday, May 26.
To complete the summer experience, the fountains and streams on the Aquarium plaza have splashed back into action. These popular water features offer a refreshing way for families to cool off and relax before or after embarking on an adventure from the mountains to the sea.
Once they’ve made their way through the galleries and visited the gift shop, there’s still plenty of other fun ways to fill a weekend getaway to Chattanooga. Just down the street from the Aquarium, the Creative Discovery Museum launches The Pigeon Comes to Chattanooga! A Mo Willems Exhibit on Saturday, May 24. This hands-on exhibit features activities themed around Caldecott Medal-winning children’s book author Mo Willems (the Elephant & Piggie series, Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!).
An American Alligator swims in the Tennessee Aquarium's Delta Country gallery.
Adjacent to the Aquarium, the Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Museum features a new exhibit honoring Medal of Honor recipient Captain Larry Taylor, whose extraordinary courage and selflessness saved the lives of his fellow soldiers during the Vietnam War. This new gallery features a full-sized replica of Captain Taylor’s AH-1G Cobra helicopter.
Atop nearby Lookout Mountain, visitors can roam with the gnomes this summer at Rock City, where they’ll find lush gardens and incredible bird and native animal shows. If a fun-filled spelunking sounds exciting (not to mention refreshingly cool), Ruby Falls offers the unforgettable sight of a 145-foot-tall underground waterfall as well as above-ground fun via a zipline adventure.
Plan your visit for this Memorial Day weekend with a visit to tnaqua.org/summer/
Oh, and those penguins? You can keep tabs on all the egg-citing drama via the Aquarium’s always-online webcam at tnaqua.org/live/penguins-rock/