is a tall
tower
A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...
located in the Momochihama area of
Fukuoka
is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. It is the tallest seaside tower in Japan. The highest observation deck at 123m has a 360degree view of the surrounding area, the most popular time to visit is at sunset. Fukuoka Tower was finished in 1989, taking a total of 14 months to build at a cost of ¥6,000,000,000 (roughly US$50,000,000 in 2015 terms). It was designed by
Nikken Sekkei
Nikken Sekkei (日建設計) is an architectural, planning and engineering firm from Japan, with headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo. Today (2019), Nikken Sekkei ranks as the second largest architectural practice in the world.
Staff and Offices
As o ...
. It was built on reclaimed land out of
Hakata Bay
is a bay in the northwestern part of Fukuoka city, on the Japanese island of Kyūshū. It faces the Tsushima Strait, and features beaches and a port, though parts of the bay have been reclaimed in the expansion of the city of Fukuoka. The bay ...
.
Architecture
Fukuoka Tower has a triangular cross-section which is covered with 8000 half-mirrors, giving it the appearance of a skyscraper. Because of this, it has been given the nickname "Mirror Sail". The half-mirrors reflect the sky when viewed from outside the structure but allow visitors to see outside while riding elevators to the top. The space between the base and the observation decks is hollow and thus unoccupied. There are three
observation deck
An observation deck, observation platform, or viewing platform is an elevated sightseeing platform usually situated upon a tall architectural structure, such as a skyscraper or observation tower. Observation decks are sometimes enclosed ...
s: one at 116 metres, a café/lounge deck at 120 metres, and the highest at 123 metres above the ground. Above this level rises a 111-metre television mast.
The underground weight of Fukuoka Tower is 25,000 tons. Its weight above ground, by contrast, is only 3,500 tons. The tower is designed to withstand
magnitude 7 earthquakes and wind speeds up to 65 m/s (). The strongest recorded earthquake in the area has been magnitude 6 and the strongest winds 49 m/s (). The tower is located at 2-3-26 Momochihama,
Sawara-ku
is one of the wards in Fukuoka-shi, Fukuoka-ken, Kyūshū, Japan.
Data
*Population: 213,178 people (as of January 1, 2012)
*Area: 95.88 square kilometers (the largest in Fukuoka-shi)
History
On April 1, 1889, Fukuoka-shi was founded. The n ...
,
Fukuoka
is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...
.
Culture
The tower appears in the Japanese film ''
Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla'' (
1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
). In a battle between the titular monsters, SpaceGodzilla uses the tower to absorb energy before Godzilla destroys the tower after the foundation is weakened by the mech MOGUERA.
Gallery
Image:Fukuoka Tower Before Sunset.jpg, Front of Fukuoka Tower
Image:Fukuoka winter.jpg, Winter view of Fukuoka from the Tower
Image:Fukuokabeachtowr.jpg, Fukuoka Tower
Image:Fukuoka Tower.JPG, A bird soars around Fukuoka Tower
Image:View_from_Fukuoka_Tower_at_Blue_Hour.jpg, View from Fukuoka Tower at Blue Hour looking eastwards
See also
*
List of tallest buildings in Japan
Japan has more than 270 high-rise buildings above . Unlike other Asian countries with skyscrapers exceeding in height, Japan's skyscrapers are relatively shorter. Construction is difficult due to the high cost of labor and construction mater ...
References
External links
*
Fukuoka Tower HP*
*
Kyushu.com Profile
{{coord, 33, 35, 35.7, N, 130, 21, 5.3, E, region:JP-26_scale:3000, display=title
Buildings and structures in Fukuoka
Communication towers in Japan
Towers completed in 1989
Tourist attractions in Fukuoka
Observation towers in Japan
Restaurant towers
1989 establishments in Japan