Seattle Space Needle
| Space Needle | |
|---|---|
The Space Needle flying the flag of the United States on Independence Day, 2011
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| Record height | |
| Tallest in Seattle and Washington state from 1962 to 1969 | |
| Preceded by | Smith Tower |
| Surpassed by | Safeco Plaza |
| General information | |
| Status | Complete |
| Type | Observation tower |
| Location | 400 Broad Street Seattle, Washington, United States |
| Coordinates | 47°37′13″N 122°20′57″W / 47.6204°N 122.3491°WCoordinates: 47°37′13″N 122°20′57″W / 47.6204°N 122.3491°W |
| Construction started | April 17, 1961 |
| Completed | December 8, 1961 |
| Opening | April 21, 1962 |
| Owner | Space Needle Corporation |
| Height | |
| Antenna spire | 184.41 m (605.0 ft) |
| Top floor | 158.12 m (518.8 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 6 |
| Lifts/elevators | 3 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | John Graham & Company |
| Structural engineer | John K. Minasian Victor Steinbrueck |
| Main contractor | Howard S. Wright Construction Co |
| Designated | April 19, 1999 |
| References | |
The Space Needle is an observation tower in Seattle, Washington, a landmark of the Pacific Northwest, and an icon of Seattle. It was built in the Seattle Center for the 1962 World's Fair, which drew over 2.3 million visitors, when nearly 20,000 people a day used its elevators.
Once the tallest structure west of the Mississippi River, it is 605 ft (184 m) high, 138 ft (42 m) wide, and weighs 9,550 tons. It is built to withstand winds of up to 200 miles per hour (89 m/s) and earthquakes of up to 9.1 magnitude, as strong as the 1700 Cascadia earthquake. It also has 25 lightning rods.
It has an observation deck at 520 ft (160 m) and the rotating SkyCity restaurant at 500 ft (150 m). The downtown Seattle skyline, as well as the Olympic and Cascade Mountains, Mount Rainier, Mount Baker, Elliott Bay and surrounding islands can be viewed from the top of the Needle. Photographs of the Seattle skyline often show the Space Needle prominently, above skyscrapers and Mount Rainier.
Visitors can reach the top of the Space Needle by elevators that travel at 10 miles per hour (4.5 m/s). The trip takes 41 seconds. On windy days, the elevators slow to 5 miles per hour (2.2 m/s). On April 19, 1999, the city's Landmarks Preservation Board designated it a historic landmark.
The architecture of the Space Needle is the result of a compromise between the designs of two men, Edward E. Carlson and John Graham, Jr. The two leading ideas for the World Fair involved businessman Edward E. Carlson's sketch of a giant balloon tethered to the ground (see the gently sloping base) and architect John Graham's concept of a flying saucer (see the halo that houses the restaurant and observation deck).Victor Steinbrueck introduced the hourglass profile of the tower. The Space Needle was built to withstand wind speeds of 200 mph (322 km/h), double the requirements in the building code of 1962. The Mw 6.8 Nisqually earthquake jolted the Needle enough in 2001 for water to slosh out of the toilets in the restrooms. The Space Needle will not sustain serious structural damage during earthquakes of magnitudes below 9. Also made to withstand Category 5 hurricane-force winds, the Space Needle sways only 1 inch per 10 mph (16 mm per 10 km/h) of wind speed.
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