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Notice anything missing? In early January, some of Chad’s bones were removed for repairs. After Chad’s November 2010 homecoming, Santa Barbara experienced rainstorms and extreme temperature fluctuations in December, which caused some of the bones to develop cracks. Therefore, the ribs and bones of the front flippers have been taken down and are undergoing repair, weather testing, and stabilization at Academy Studios.
REPAIR UPDATE (03/30/2011)
Academy Studios has repaired the cracks in the rib bones and tested the repairs by exposing the bones to extreme environments. The bones are ready for reinstallation which is scheduled for the
week of April 18, 2011.
The repair work was under our warranty contract with Academy Studios and therefore did not add to the project cost.
BLUE WHALE SKELETON
EXHIBIT NEXT STEPS
The exhibit area is still under construction to complete the hardscaping, landscaping,
lighting, and signage.
See More Blue Whale Skeleton Restoration Photos
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
Day 8
Day 9
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BEFORE & AFTER
Skull before restoration.
Skull after restoration.
The skull weighs more than
4,500 pounds. The lower mandible (jawbone) is 19 feet long and weighs nearly 1,000 pounds.
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BLUE WHALE SKELETON
RESTORATION TEAM
Co-Project Managers
Paul W. Collins
Gary Robinson
Fundraising Committee
Carolyn Chandler, Co-chair
Patty MacFarlane, Co-chair
Fred Benko
Doug Dreier
Bobbie Kinnear
Joan Kurze
Alexander Power
Julia Rodgers
Karl Hutterer, Executive Director
Whale Skull Prep
Peter Gaede
Paul Collins
Laura Wilson
Michelle Berman
Krista Fahy
Exhibits
Simon Allen
Michelle Berman
Paul Collins
Heather Moffat
Site Preparation
Fitch Construction
Engineer
Jeffery E. Haight,
Ehlen Spiess & Haight
Academy Studios
Dean Weldon, Owner
Jim Slater, Production Manager
Andrew (AJ) Miller, Logistics
Pete Gibbons, Senior Fabricator
Mike Sauter, Senior Fabricator
Weir/Andrewson Assoc. Inc.
Roy Andrewson, Engineering
Mike Zelazek, Engineering
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In March 2010, the Museum's Blue Whale skeleton "migrated" north to an exhibit design company called Academy Studios, in Novato, California, where it underwent a thorough restoration. The skeleton was dismantled and moved north on a truck, but the skull of the whale remained at the Museum because it is too badly deteriorated to be restored. Instead, a skull harvested from a 2007 Blue Whale stranding took the place of the old skull when the restoration was completed.
After nearly nine months of meticulous restoration by and preparation of a new skull and mandibles by staff from the Museum’s Vertebrate Zoology Department, the Museum’s Blue Whale skeleton was restored and reinstalled in November 2010. It is arguable, that "Chad" is the most anatomically correct Blue Whale skeleton display in the world. The restored skeleton is positioned as if the whale is beginning a deep dive into the water. Soon, visitors will once again enjoy walking under the skeleton and into the rib cage to experience the shear size of these gentle giants.
The restored skeleton, which weighs nearly 7,700 pounds, is 98% real bones and is a composite of four specimens. The skull and mandibles and one of the ear bones are from two different Blue Whales that stranded in Ventura, California in September 2007; the last five tail vertebrae are cast replicas made from tail bones of a Blue Whale borrowed from the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History, and the majority of the skeleton is from a Blue Whale that stranded on south Vandenberg Air Force Base in 1980.
Our Blue Whale skeleton is proudly named "Chad" thanks to the leadership gift of the Dreier Family. The skeleton is truly a generational icon, so Museum Trustee Doug Dreier and his family named it “Chad,” which is the middle name of the men in the Dreier Family for three generations.
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NEXT STEPS: Finalize exhibit area for public access into the Blue Whale skeleton. Stay tuned for further updates.
- Reinstall ribs.
- Finish exhibit pad area.
- Install lighting from BEGA-USA.
- Install signage.
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INSTALLATION PROCESS (November 10-19, 2010)
To see pictures of the installation process click on one of the days.
Day #1: Wednesday, November 10
- Front half of parking lot will be closed to the public.
- Early this morning between 8:50 AM and 10:15 AM, Specilaty Crane lifted the cranium, rostrum and vertebral column from the flat bed truck to the exhibit area. For the remainder of the day, the team will be working on positioning the support posts and the skull. Thanks to Specialty Crane for donating their time and expertise.
Day #2: Thursday, November 11
- Front half of parking lot will be closed to the public.
- Use the gantries to assist with positioning the cranium and rostrum and support posts on the structural concrete footings.
- Form and pour structural self-leveling grout under posts and let set overnight.
Day #3: Friday, November 12
- Front half of parking lot may be closed to the public for the delivery of the second shipment of bones.
- Unload the 26 ft stake side truck which contains mandibles, flipper armature steel and front limb bones, rib bones, and remaining small bones.
- Work on final placement and attachment to steel supports of the bones of the skull and rostrum.
- Shift 3 gantries to spine assembly area directly behind skull.
- Assemble 3 sections of spine armature with gantries at working height.
- Assemble rib steel armature onto spine armature.
Day #4: Saturday, November 13
- Raise assembled spine armature to final height with gantries.
- Cut steel support posts to finished height and weld steel base plates to the posts.
- Stand up the posts and attach the spine armature to the posts
- Attach spine armature to skull.
- Form and pour structural self-leveling grout under B1, B2 and B3 posts and let set overnight.
Day #5: Monday, November 15
- Final set B1, B2 and B3 posts.
- Assemble ribs.
Day #6: Tuesday, November 16
- Continue to assemble ribs.
- Install mandibles on armature.
- Assemble flipper armature and upper limb bones.
Day #7: Wednesday, November 17
- Vertebral disk work.
- Assemble carpal bones and phalanges.
- Assemble chevrons.
- Assemble all smaller bones.
Day #8: Thursday, November 18
- Vertebral disk work.
- Assemble carpal bones and phalanges.
- Assemble chevrons.
- Assemble all smaller bones.
Day #9: Friday, November 19
- Finishing touches.
- Prepare for curatorial inspection.
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