Exhibit Shows Life in Coastal Habitats

The plants and animals found in California coastal habitats are explored in a new exhibit at the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium in San Pedro. “Life on the Edge: Preserving Our Coastal Wetlands” features the work of pastel artist Erica Fielder and focuses on the wildlife of the California coast. Visitors will learn about the fragile wetlands and issues concerning their survival in the exhibit, which runs through Nov. 5. Call (310) 548-7563.

ASTRONOMY

* The spectacular collision of the Comet Shoemaker-Levy with Jupiter in July will be the subject of the Santa Monica College astronomy program “Jupiter and the Comet” on Friday and Sept. 23 at 8 p.m. in Room 105 of the Business Building. The program follows the weekly 7 p.m. night sky show. Call (310) 452-9396.

* The Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History will begin a new series of planetarium shows this month and next with “Saturn and Its Icy Family” at 8 p.m. Friday at the planetarium. Visitors can view the moon and Saturn through the large telescopes at the museum’s Palmer Observatory, also at 8 p.m. Call (805) 682-3224.

ALTERNATIVE FUELS

* The Los Angeles Community Reuse Organization will host the first of a series of monthly science workshops at the Department of Energy’s Technology Engineering Center near Chatsworth at 9:30 a.m. Saturday. The first workshop, “The Path to the Hydrogen Economy,” will discuss hydrogen as a non-polluting alternative fuel. Reservations are required. Call (818) 586-6424.

BOTANY

* Plant regeneration after the 1993 wildfires will be discussed at the meeting of the California Native Plant Society’s Los Angeles/Santa Monica Mountains Chapter at 7:30 p.m. tonight at the Brentwood Magnet School Auditorium. Call (213) 933-8993.

* A one-day class on Native Americans’ many uses of plants is being offered by Earth Skills in San Pedro at 9 a.m. Saturday. Call (310) 833-4249.

HEALTH/MEDICINE

* St. Johns Hospital and Health Center will be one of more than 100 sites participating in a national satellite town meeting on health care reform at 11 a.m. Friday. Policy experts, grass-roots activists and elected officials will take part in the program. For reservations call (31) 829-8453.

* The UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute and Hospital will host the first of two community seminars on mood disorders, “Genetic Studies of Mental Illness,” at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the hospital auditorium. Reservations are required. Call (310) 825-6968.

ORNITHOLOGY

* “Bolsa Chica: The Endangered Jewel,” will be the featured topic at the meeting of the Whittier Audubon Society at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Whittier Community Center. Call (310) 869-8420.

* Ornithologists Kimball Garrett and Fred Heath will discuss the Los Angeles County Breeding Bird Atlas and how local residents can participate in the project at the meeting of the Los Angeles Audubon Society at 8 p.m. tonight in Plummer Park, West Hollywood. Call (213) 876-0202 or the bird tape at (213) 874-1318.