Description
Scripps Pier is one of the world’s biggest research piers, it is used for boat launching and a variety of experiments. Data on ocean conditions and plankton taken from the pier since 1916 provide an unparalleled source of information on changes in the coastal Pacific Ocean. The pier also provides a supply of fresh seawater, a critical resource for a marine institution, to an array of laboratories and aquaria. Seawater is pumped up from the end of the pier, then filtered and stored in holding tanks. Scripps pumps about 1.8 million gallons of seawater each day.
The original Scripps Pier, built in 1915-1916, was a 1,000-foot-long facility for acquiring clean seawater for the campus laboratories and the public aquarium. Ellen Browning Scripps provided all of the money ($36,000) for its construction. That structure—well built for its day, with reinforced concrete and wooden pilings and a wooden deck—survived many years and storms, but extensive repairs were made to it in 1926 and 1946.
Major concerns about the soundness of the old pier finally led to its total replacement. The modern pier, which is 1,090 feet long, was built of reinforced concrete alongside the original pier, which was then removed.
This photograph is printed up to 40×60 on a high quality canvas with a 1 1/2 inch black gallery wrap, or acrylic.
