Ready to explore the ocean? Join us at the National Maritime Museum for a fabulous celebration of our blue planet.

Meet scientists, explorers and conservationists, take part in a range of workshops and live performances, and discover rarely seen treasures from the National Maritime Museum's collection.

All activities take place on Saturday 11 June unless otherwise stated and are open to all Museum visitors. Book your free tickets online in advance to guarantee entry, and keep scrolling to find out more about what you can enjoy during World Oceans Day 2022.

Journey into the ice

This World Oceans Day, we're excited to open Poles Apart at the National Maritime Museum. This brand new gallery will take visitors to the icy frontiers of modern polar science and lift the lid on the UK's newest polar research ship: the RRS Sir David Attenborough.

Date and times: Sneak preview on Wednesday 8 June; official opening on Saturday 11 June | Location: Next to the Great Map Café

Metronomes Steel Orchestra

The 10-strong steelband will be bring their amazing sound to Greenwich this World Oceans Day. Catch one of their performances live either on The Great Map or outside by the Ship in a Bottle statue.

London Sea Shanty Collective

Sing along to some sea shanties with The London Sea Shanty Collective as they bring the Museum to life with traditional working songs. The group will perform two 30-minute sets as well as a workshop where the audience can take part.

Discover a brand new art installation

See a series of thought-provoking digital artworks works created in response to the current ocean crisis. In partnership with The Collective Makers, four artists will be showcasing their responses to this year's theme at the National Maritime Museum.

Location: on display throughout the National Maritime Museum

Create recycled fashion

An artist-led workshop exploring themes of climate change and ocean waste. Create wearable artworks from everyday materials inspired by Practitioner in Residence Serge Attukwei Clottey. This workshop is a continuation of Longitudinal Dialogues, a collaborative programme developed by Royal Museums Greenwich, The Line and Arup Phase 2.

Location: The ReThink Space

Send a message for our oceans

This is a new display created by Year 5 pupils from Rathfern Primary School in collaboration with Royal Museums Greenwich and Ocean Generation. The pupils have already added their personal pledges to help save the oceans, and you will be able to contribute your own.

Location: Learning Space

World Oceans Day takes place on 8 June every year as a celebration of the ocean and our continuing reliance on it.

Over 70 per cent of our blue planet is covered in water, and more than half of all the oxygen we breathe comes from ocean plants. We rely on the ocean for food security, transportation, coastal defences and much more.

We are increasingly aware of the huge negative effect we are having on the ocean, however.

Over-fishing, greenhouse gas emissions, chemical and noise pollution, ocean mining and plastic pollution all threaten the health of our oceans, as well as "nonpoint source" pollution from farms, foresting and transportation. 80 per cent of pollution to the marine environment comes from the land.

This year, Royal Museums Greenwich will be working with several scientific organisations, conservation and community groups to produce free workshops, talks and performances at the National Maritime Museum suitable for all ages. The main celebration will take place on Saturday 11 June, with a host of additional activities, resources and features also available online.

Main photo By David Troeger on Unsplash