Presentation Transcript

1. SEATTLE SPACE NEEDLE

   RACHEL SHULMAN 7B
2. About the Space Needle The Seattle Space Needle is located in Seattle, Washington and is on 400 Broad Street. It is an observation tower, and was built for the 1962 World’s Fair, which had the theme of the 21st century. The Space Needle began construction on April 17th 1961, and construction ended on December 8th 1961. It took just 9 months to build it.
3. Edward Carlson, who was the president of Western International Hotels at the time, first brainstormed the idea of the structure. He first drew the sketch of the Space Needle on a napkin in a coffee house in Germany. Carlson’s design had to be revised several times by architects as he was not an artist, but little did he know that his sketch on a napkin would soon become the symbol of Seattle.
4. Uniqueness and Structural Features The Space Needle is unique for many reasons. One reason it is unique is because it was built extremely fast, and for a very little amount of money. It is also very unique as it has a very cool design to it, and not a lot of structures look anything like it. It is a very interesting structure as it was made to look like it was built in the future, so it has a unique style to it. It also has a rotating restaurant and it feels like you are eating on a UFO. The Space Needle gives a clear and undisturbed 360 degrees view of Seattle and mountains too.
5. The structure has a foundation of concrete that is 120 feet. The foundation weighs more than the Space Needle does. For the construction of the structure, it took 467 cement trucks less than a day to fill the foundation with cement. There are 25 lightning rods on the roof of the Space Needle, and 848 steps to reach the halo. The elevators in the Needle take about 43 seconds to reach the top of the Space Needle, which is the halo.
6. The halo is 138 feet in diameter. Including the antenna at the top, it is 605 feet tall, which is 184 meters. It includes an observation deck at 520 feet off the ground, a gift shop, and a rotating restaurant, which are both 500 feet above the ground. The structure has steel beams that curve, and act as legs to hold up the halo. The Needle was built to withstand up to 320 kilometers of wind. They do not let people in if a storm comes though, just for safety precautions.
7. The Space Needle is also able to withstand large earthquakes. It can survive an earthquake of a magnitude up to about 9-9.5, but then it might collapse if the earthquake were to be stronger than that. Architects and designers of the structure made the Needle meet safety requirements back then, and they even made it safer than that. They designed it and built is so well, that it still meets safety requirements today. The structure is mostly made from concrete, steel and glass. Its center of gravity is just about a meter below ground level.
8. The Space Needle has a certain type of architecture, which is called Googie architecture. It is when a structure or an object has a futuristic look and design to it, and can be influenced by cultural cars, and outer space. The Space Needle had the theme of the future to it, and the halo looks like a UFO or a flying saucer.
9. The Space Needle is a combination structure. It is a shell, solid and a frame structure. It is a frame structure as it has steel beams that act as frames andhold up the structure. They are not necessarily light, but they are much lighter than a solid structure would be. I also know it is a frame because it is able to handle large loads and can hold a lot of weight. Some of the loads it is able to handle are tables in the restaurant, the kitchen and its appliances, people, and lightning rods. It is easy to see that it is a frame structure as it holds up the entire halo, which weighs quite a lot. It is a shell structure because it has a hollow inside. The halo is very hollow besides for the objects inside of it. The area of the elevator, the stairs and the main Pavilion deck are hollow as well. It is a solid structure as well as the foundation is completely solid. Without a solid foundation, the space needle would not be able to stand as the foundation would not be strong enough.
10. Purpose of the Space Needle The Space Needle serves a few purposes. One of them was that it was built for the 1962 World’s Fair. It had over 2.3 million visitors during the World’s Fair. It also now is the symbol of Seattle, and is a distinctive part of Seattle’s skyline. Also, it gives a great view of Seattle and lots of mountains as well. Lots of banquets are held in the Space Needle. It holds special events, parties and meetings there too. Every year, there is a large New Years celebration and countdown outside of the Needle. It also has a telecommunications antenna giving 13 square kilometers of broadband internet access to people in Seattle.
11. Social and Economic Effect This structure had a large effect on both the economy and the social status of Seattle. The Space Needle affected Seattle’s economy because during the World Fair, it attracted many visitors. It had over 2.3 million visitors, and tickets were not too expensive, but they still cost money. This money went to the city of Seattle and could have possibly raised their economy. If 2.3 million people bought tickets to the Needle, Seattle would have made tons on money from this. Also, because it cost very little money to construct, the economy also could have risen as they made much more money than it cost them to build it. The structure has also changed the social status of Seattle. It is now the symbol of Seattle. During the World Fair in 1962, Seattle became a very popular place as so many people went there to visit. This raised their social status and has made it a more popular and liked city. Also, if people enjoyed their time in Seattle during the fair, they may even want to come back which can also raise their social status.
12. Bibliography "Space Needle" Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Wikipedia. 22 Jan 2012: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Needle. 24 Jan 2012. "www.spaceneedleinfo.com" The Creation of the Space Needle. N.P. 15 Aug 2011: http://www.spaceneedleinfo.com/the-creation-of-the-seattle-space-needle/. 25 Jan 2012. "The Space Needle" About.com. N.P. N.D: http://architecture.about.com/od/towers/ig/Tall-Towers/Space-Needle.htm. 24 Jan 2012. “Mysteries Revealed, The Structure” Space Needle. Space Needle LLC. 2008: http://www.spaceneedle.com/discover/funfacts.html. 26 Jan 2012 “The Story Starts On a Napkin” Space Needle. . Space Needle LLC. 2008: http://www.spaceneedle.com/discover/history.html. 19 January 2012 “Space Needle” Wiki Arquitectura, Buildings of the World. N.P. 25 November 2010: http://en.wikiarquitectura.com/index.php/Space_Needle. 25 January 2012 Arnold, Thomas. “About the Space Needle” USA Today Travel. Demand Media. N.D: http://traveltips.usatoday.com/space-needle-11840.html. 20 January 2012