The Kyiv TV Tower ( uk, Телевізійна вежа, translit=Televiziyna vezha) is a
lattice
Lattice may refer to:
Arts and design
* Latticework, an ornamental criss-crossed framework, an arrangement of crossing laths or other thin strips of material
* Lattice (music), an organized grid model of pitch ratios
* Lattice (pastry), an orna ...
metal
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 ...
on Oranzhereina Street,
Kyiv
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
,
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
, and is the tallest structure in the country.
The tower was built in 1973 while Kyiv was the capital of
Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...
.
The tower was the tallest freestanding metal structure in the world
until being surpassed by the
Tokyo Skytree
is a broadcasting and observation tower in Sumida, Tokyo. It became the tallest structure in Japan in 2010[radio
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...](_blank)
and
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution (business), distribution of sound, audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio ...
and is not open to the public.
History
The tower was first designed for
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
, then the Soviet capital. But Moscow authorities preferred a more "solid" type of tower, which was eventually built (
Ostankino Tower). Later, when Kyiv needed its own tower, the project was reintroduced. The Soviet government ordered the engineers to shorten the tower by almost 30%, so as not to be as tall as the Moscow one.
Location
The tower was built on top of the Jewish cemetery in
Lukianovka. The cemetery was officially closed in 1966 and Jewish families were given six months to rebury their relatives in the Jewish areas of a new cemetery in the city. Since the relatives of the interred had been killed in the
Babi Yar massacre
Babi Yar (russian: Ба́бий Яр) or Babyn Yar ( uk, Бабин Яр) is a ravine in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and a site of massacres carried out by Nazi Germany's forces during its campaign against the Soviet Union in World War II. The fi ...
, most of the graves were not moved. After the headstones had been destroyed or removed, the antenna was built on top of the existing graves.
Construction
Construction began in 1968 and finished in 1973
at a cost of approximately $12 million. Made of steel pipe of various
diameter
In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid for ...
s and thicknesses, the structure weighs . The central pipe, or core, where the
elevator
An elevator or lift is a wire rope, cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or deck (building), decks of a building, watercraft, ...
is located, is in diameter and made of pipe that is 12 mm thick. It sits on a four-legged base that is about meters tall. Atop the base is an enclosed level which houses
microwave
Microwave is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths ranging from about one meter to one millimeter corresponding to frequencies between 300 MHz and 300 GHz respectively. Different sources define different frequency ran ...
transmitting and receiving equipment. At about is a second enclosed level that houses television and
FM transmitters, as well as a control and maintenance shop. This second level is the elevator's terminus.
The tower is unique in that no mechanical fasteners such as rivets are used in the structure: every joint, pipe and fixture is attached by
welding
Welding is a fabrication (metal), fabrication process that joins materials, usually metals or thermoplastics, by using high heat to melt the parts together and allowing them to cool, causing Fusion welding, fusion. Welding is distinct from lower ...
. It is the first all-welded tower in the world.
2022 missile strike
On 1 March 2022, the tower was hit by a missile fired by Russian forces during the
Battle of Kyiv as part of the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...
. According to Ukrainian officials, five people were killed as a result. The dead included
Yevhenii Sakun, the first journalist killed in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Ukraine state advisor
Anton Herashchenko
Anton Yuriiovych Herashchenko ( uk, Антон Юрійович Геращенко, born 10 February 1979) is a current official advisor and a former deputy minister at the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs. He is a former member of the Ukr ...
accused the Russian army of trying to disrupt the city's communication infrastructure.
According to ''
The Kyiv Independent
''The Kyiv Independent'' is an English-language Ukraine, Ukrainian online newspaper founded in 2021 by former staff of the ''Kyiv Post'' and media consultancy Jnomics Media. The online newspaper is also active on Twitter.
Founding
In October 2 ...
'', Ukrainian TV channels' broadcasting was disrupted following the attack. It is unknown if the strike intended to topple the tower or if the intent was to disable its transmission and reception systems. The extent of the damage was not immediately apparent, and the tower remained standing.
The
Ukrainian foreign ministry
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine ( uk, Міністерство закордонних справ України) is the ministry of the Ukrainian government that oversees the foreign relations of Ukraine. The head of the ministry is the ...
condemned the attack due to its proximity to the memorial to the Babi Yar massacres. The
Babi Yar Holocaust Memorial Center confirmed reports that a second missile had hit the nearby memorial, however there are contradicting reports.
See also
*
Lattice tower
A lattice tower or truss tower is a freestanding vertical framework tower. This construction is widely used in transmission towers carrying high voltage electric power lines, in radio masts and towers (a self-radiating tower or as a support for a ...
*
List of tallest towers in the world
Several extant building fulfill the engineering definition of a tower: "a tall human structure, always taller than it is wide, for public or regular operational access by humans, but not for living in or office work, and are ''self-supporting' ...
*
List of tallest structures in Europe
This is a list of the tallest structures of any kind which exist or existed in Europe. The list contains all types of structures, including guyed masts and oil drilling platforms of 350 metres (1,150 feet) or more.
Sortable list
History
Th ...
*
List of tallest freestanding structures in the world
This is a list of tallest freestanding structures in the world past and present. To be freestanding a structure must not be supported by guy wires, the sea or other types of support. It therefore does not include guyed masts, partially guyed tow ...
*
List of tallest freestanding steel structures
This is a list of tallest freestanding steel structures in the world past and present. To be a freestanding steel structure it must not be supported by guy wires, the list therefore does not include guyed masts and the main vertical and lateral str ...
*
List of transmission sites
In the following there are lists of sites of notable radio transmitters. During the early history of radio many countries had only a few high power radio stations, operated either by the government or large corporations, which broadcast to the po ...
References
External links
*
*
members.lycos.nl– Kyiv Central Radio TV Tower
emporis.com– Kyiv TV Tower
''Russian Strike on the Kyiv TV tower.''In: forensic-architecture.org, 10 June 2022 (with video).
{{Supertall
Jewish cemeteries in Ukraine
Jewish cemeteries
Towers completed in 1973
Towers in Ukraine
Radio masts and towers in Europe
Tourist attractions in Kyiv
Buildings and structures in Kyiv
Towers built in the Soviet Union
Lattice towers
1973 establishments in Ukraine
Buildings and structures destroyed during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
Kyiv offensive (2022)
Articles containing video clips