London Eye
| London Eye | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| General information | |
| Status | Complete |
| Type | Ferris wheel |
| Location | London SE1, England |
| Coordinates | 51°30′12″N 0°07′10″W / 51.5033°N 0.1194°WCoordinates: 51°30′12″N 0°07′10″W / 51.5033°N 0.1194°W |
| Completed | March 2000 |
| Opened | 31 December 1999 (ceremonial, without passengers) 1 February 2000 (first passengers carried) 9 March 2000 (opened to general public) |
| Cost | £70 million |
| Height | 135 metres (443 ft) |
| Dimensions | |
| Diameter | 120 metres (394 ft) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Frank Anatole, Nic Bailey, Julia Barfield, Steve Chilton, Malcolm Cook, David Marks, Mark Sparrowhawk |
| Architecture firm | Marks Barfield Architects |
| Engineer | Arup |
The London Eye is a giant Ferris wheel on the South Bank of the River Thames in London. Also known as the Millennium Wheel, it has also been called by its owners the British Airways London Eye, the Merlin Entertainments London Eye, the EDF Energy London Eye and, as of mid-January 2015, the Coca-Cola London Eye.
The structure is 443 feet (135 m) tall and the wheel has a diameter of 394 feet (120 m). When erected in 1999 it was the world's tallest Ferris wheel. Its height was surpassed by the 520 feet (158 m) tall Star of Nanchang in 2006, the 541 feet (165 m) tall Singapore Flyer in 2008, and the 550 feet (168 m) High Roller (Las Vegas) in 2014. Supported by an A-frame on one side only, unlike the taller Nanchang and Singapore wheels, the Eye is described by its operators as "the world's tallest cantilevered observation wheel".
It is Europe's tallest Ferris wheel, and offered the highest public viewing point in London until it was superseded by the 804 feet (245 m) observation deck on the 72nd floor of The Shard, which opened to the public on 1 February 2013. It is the most popular paid tourist attraction in the United Kingdom with over 3.75 million visitors annually, and has made many appearances in popular culture.
The London Eye adjoins the western end of Jubilee Gardens (previously the site of the former Dome of Discovery), on the South Bank of the River Thames between Westminster Bridge and Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth.
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Wikipedia