The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) have arrived in Second Life, and they brought all the fun and excitement you have naturally come to expect from fluid dynamics! In case you haven't been on any submarine rides lately, the NOAA is the governmental agency tasked with researching the oceans, climate, weather, and anything else having to do with gigantic masses of air and water. (Full disclosure, I was part of this project.)
The NOAA's sim is called Meteroa, which is derived from the Greek adjective meteoras which means 'suspended in the air' (Full disclosure, I'm Greek). On this lovely island sim you can find fully interactive educational demonstrations about the ocean and weather. Examples include a sea life submarine ride created by The Magicians, and two different tsnuami demos by Aimee Weber Studios and Electric Sheep Company. Other fun stuff includes a demonstration of a real-time temperature map powered by Yahoo, narration by Exploratorium Chief Scientist Paul Doherty, an airplane ride into a hurricane, and a melting glacier demonstration.
The NOAA's arrival may be a great sign of things to come. United States government agencies aren't exactly what you call flamboyant, trendy, or fashionable. Their interest in Second Life as a solid educational tool may give other companies a greater sense of comfort in the stability of the platform. We can only hope!
If you can't make it out to the actual exhibit, then you may want to check out Aimee's tsunami demo in movie form created by SL resident and friend Isruel Asturias here. And for chuckles, a parody version here. 
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