An IMAX Adventure about the Origin of Life and Natural Selection
Traveling to the equator and across the Pacific Ocean, you arrive in the spectacular world of the Galapagos archipelago by air and by sea, just as every other species arrived before you during the past few million years. Islands appear as moonscapes, with hardened swirls of black lava rock, in stark contrast to others that cradle lush green vegetation in their highlands.
Giant Galapagos tortoises, marine iguanas, and unusual birds all appear tame and even curious about your presence. Sea lion pups frolic with you in tidal pools, and schools of hammerhead sharks swim above, as you dive into the depths of the waters surrounding the islands.
A group of inquisitive moray eels emerge from their cave near an underwater lava tube to look at you, jaws gaping, just as you are looking at them. Descending into the darkness of the ocean in a high tech submersible, you gaze at luminescent sea cucumbers, brilliantly colored crustaceans, and species of animals no human has seen before.
The Smithsonian Institution and IMAX, Ltd. take you on a fantastic voyage to a strange world hidden within our own. Uncover mysteries of the deep. Explore caverns buried beneath the earth and sea. Engage extraordinary wildlife previously unknown to mankind, all through the magic of the IMAX Experience.
Part adventure, part scientific expedition, part personal quest, this non-fiction film takes us on a journey with marine biologist Dr. Carole Baldwin from the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History during her first trip to the Galapagos. Traveling to the terrestrial world of the islands which were first chronicled for science over 160 years ago by Charles Darwin, the audience dives with Dr. Baldwin and Ecuadorian naturalist Mathias Espinosa into the largely unknown waters to explore the wonders of this living natural science laboratory.