On June 18, 2026, the National Geographic Museum of Exploration officially opened its doors in Washington, D.C.

Among many other stories, the museum tells a whole collection of underwater adventures—from Robert Ballard’s discovery of the Titanic to today’s cutting-edge ocean exploration.

The opening ceremony was led by National Geographic Society CEO Jill Tiefenthaler, who officially cut the ribbon.

Alongside remarkable artifacts—including the Rolex Deepsea watch worn by James Cameron during his expeditions to both the Titanic and the bottom of the Mariana Trench—visitors can also see a DUI TLS 350 dry suit belonging to National Geographic Explorer Bogdana Vashchenko.

This is the very suit she used while working on the Orda Cave Awareness Project between 2010 and 2013, Until the Ice Melts and others, documenting one of the world’s most extraordinary underwater cave systems and helping bring global attention to its conservation.

The museum’s opening was attended by none other than “Her Deepness,” Sylvia Earle, whose presence made the celebration even more special for the exploration community.

It has been an exciting few months for the PHOTOTEAM. PRO. Earlier, photographs by Viktor Lyagushkin from our Georgia’s Bats project were featured in an exhibition at the Tbilisi Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Now, another chapter of our work has found its place in a museum—this time through Bogdana Vashchenko’s expedition dry suit at the new National Geographic Museum of Exploration in Washington, D.C.