Burj Dubai Tower Update





The Burj Dubai tower in the United Arab Emirates is quietly progressing on its goal of being the tallest building in the world.

I thought their website was a bit over the top ("only a few structures have had the power to change history"), but then I read this interesting statement:

"At the crossroads of India and the Middle East, equidistant between Europe and Asia, Dubai is fast becoming the financial and cultural hub for over a billion people. At the centre of that hub stands the most exclusive address in the world."

You can't say they don't have a vision. Remarkably, the inspiration for the tower comes from - a flower. The Hymenocallis is a plant widely cultivated in Dubai, India and around the region. It's harmonious structure is one of the organizing principles for the design.





The building is now springing upward from its foundation, which consists of 192 piles constructed to depths of more than 50 meters, bound together by a 3.7 meter thick concrete raft across 8,000 square metres, and encompasses the towers entire footprint. The total concrete poured into the foundation (over 45,000 cubic meters) weighs more than 110,000 tons.

The high performance exterior cladding system will be employed to withstand the extreme temperatures during the summer months in Dubai. Primary materials include reflective glazing, aluminum and textured stainless steel spandrel panels and the vertical stainless tubular fins accentuating the height and the slenderness of the tower. When completed Burj Dubai will hold the record in all four categories as recognized by the New York-based global authority - Council on Tall Building and Urban Habitat  highest structure, roof, antenna and occupied floor.

Science fiction writers have created vast structures; for example, in Tower of Glass, a 1970 novel by Robert Silverberg, a six kilometer-high tower is constructed. (This novel also has the first use of the cyberpunk term "jack in."). SF writers also create structures that are not only based on animals or plants, but which actually incorporate living animals or plants. The float-home from Frank Herbert's 1969 novel Whipping Star is actually constructed using a very large mammalian lifeform.

See also the earlier article Burj Tower in Dubai to be World's Tallest Building. Thanks also to Jeff for his comments.

Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 7/27/2005)

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