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Space Needle
The Space Needle is the Pacific Northwest's most recognizable landmark and is the symbol of Seattle, Washington. Located on the grounds of Seattle Center, it was built for the 1962 World's Fair, during which it hosted 2.3 million visitors. The Space Needle is a tower 184 m (605 feet) high and 42 m (138 feet) wide at its widest point and weighs 9,550 tons. It is built to withstand winds of up to 200 mph (320 km/h) and earthquakes up to 9.1 magnitude, and has 25 lightning rods on the roof to withstand lightning strikes.
The Space Needle features an observation deck at 520 feet (159 m), restaurant, and gift shop. From the top of it, one can see not only the Downtown Seattle skyline, but also the Cascade Mountains, Mount Rainier, Elliot Bay and surrounding islands. Visitors can reach the top via elevators that travel at 10 mph. This trip takes 43 seconds and some tourists wait in hour-long lines in order to ascend to the top of the tower.
The unique architecture of the Space Needle is the result of a compromise between designs. The two leading ideas involved businessman Edward 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). The Space Needle was built to withstand severe earthquakes by doubling the building code of 1962. But an earthquake registering 6.8 on the Richter Scale jolted the Needle enough in 1965 for water to slosh out of the toilets in the restrooms. The Space Needle can escape 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 (2 mm per km/h)of wind speed.
For decades, the "hovering disk" of the Space Needle was home to two 500-foot high restaurants called the Space Needle Restaurant and Emerald Suite. These were closed in 2000 to make way for SkyCity, a larger restaurant that features various Pacific Northwest entrées. It rotates exactly 360 degrees in exactly one hour. In 1993, the elevators were replaced with new computerized versions. Traveling at 10 mph, the elevator goes at the same speed as raindrops. Snowflakes fall at just 3 mph, so traveling down in the elevator during a snowstorm makes the snow appear to be moving upwards.
On December 31, 1999 (New Year's Eve) a powerful beam of light was unveiled for the first time. Called the Legacy Light or Skybeam, it features intensely bright (85 million candle power) lamps that shine skyward from the top of the Space Needle to honor national holidays and special occasions in Seattle. The concept of this beam was derived from the official 1962 World's Fair poster, which depicted such a light source although none was incorporated into the original design. It is somewhat controversial because of the light pollution it creates for astronomers. Originally planned to be turned on 75 nights per year, it has generally been used less than a dozen times per year. It did remain lit for twelve days in a row on September 11, 2001 to September 22, 2001 in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
The same 1962 World's Fair original poster showed a grand spiral entryway leading to the elevator, but again this was left out of the original plans. This has also recently become realized with a new two-story Pavilion Level enclosed in glass. Some feel that this level's design resembles that of a nautilus. There are 832 steps in all from the basement to the restaurant.
At 605 feet, the Space Needle was the tallest building west of the Mississippi River at the time it was built, but is now dwarfed by other structures along the Seattle Skyline, among them the Bank of America Center, at 284m (933 feet).