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The Polar Rink, a first for the museum, officially opens to the public tomorrow.

The rink features synthetic ice to help keep costs down.

The first skaters who tested the rink before the opening said it felt like the real thing.

"It's like the same exact same thing as ice but you can't really tell," said a skater. "It felt smooth, really smooth."

"It was easier than regular ice," said another.

Museum officials say they hope it will be a fun and educational experience for the whole family.

"One of the things we're doing is trying to teach about reducing carbon footprints. So what this does is reduce the amount of energy that we use in order to maintain the ice," said Brad Harris, senior director of Visitor Services at the Museum of Natural History. "So you can imagine an ice pad takes a lot of energy to keep it frozen, with Zamboni costs and the other thing. And what we have is a one-inch piece of plastic that you can skate on. So it saves us a lot of energy."

During the summer, the site for the rink is the popular Ross Terrace near the Rose Center for Earth and Space. But now the rink, which includes a large statue of a polar bear, expects to be just as popular.

"They can learn a little bit about polar bears at the same time, and it ties into our show on global climate change," said AMNH President Ellen Futter, "and so it really fits very well with everything we do as a science institution and as a civic institution in New York City."

Former New York Ranger Glenn Anderson and Marni Halasa from the Ice Theater of New York will be on hand tomorrow to greet the first skaters.

The rink will remain open through the end of February.

A 45-minute session costs $10 for adults, $9 for students and seniors, and $8 for children ages 3 to 12. All prices include skate rental.

For more information go to amnh.org.