Graph of the tallest structures in the world (timsdad / wikipedia.org)

For many years, humanity has been pulled up into the sky. Even the Bible has a story about the construction of the Tower of Babel. The city of skyscrapers was destined to become not only New York. In many cities of Asia, skyscrapers of the most interesting forms have grown one after another, which have added to the list of the tallest buildings. The list is presented below.

10th place. Kingkey 100 - 442 meters, China

Kingkey 100 is located in Shenzhen. In the central part of the financial district in Guangdong province. It ranks tenth in the list of tallest buildings. Its height is approximately 442 meters. It is the fourth highest in the whole of the Middle Kingdom.

As you might guess from the name, the skyscraper has 100 floors. This building is multifunctional. The first 67 of its floors belong to offices. Above, there are shopping malls and a hotel. The uppermost four floors are occupied by elite restaurants and a garden called "Heavenly".

Kingkey 100 (11 × 16 Design Studio / flickr.com)

9th Willis Tower - 443 meters, USA

Willis Tower is one of the landmarks of Chicago. This is the city in which, as in New York, they began to build skyscrapers. And here a skyscraper was erected, which is in ninth place on the list.

Willis Tower Observation Deck (Dustin Gaffke / flickr.com)

The building was built in 1973, and for 25 years it was the tallest building in the world. How many floors did it have? There are 110 floors here, and offices occupy a very large area - 418 thousand square meters.

It is the second tallest skyscraper in the United States of America. From this height, you can see the entire state of Illinois. The neighboring states can be seen from the observation deck. The equipped place with a magnificent view is called Skydeck. In general, the tower is very popular among visitors, so it is visited by about 25 thousand people a day.

Willis Tower (Dustin Gaffke / flickr.com)

8th place. Zifeng Tower - 450 meters, China

Located in Nanjing in the Nanjing Greenland Financial Center. This is one of the high-rise buildings of the new millennium - it was built in 2008. Included in the list of the tallest buildings in the world.

The tower owes its extraordinary appearance to the architect Adrian Smith. The tower seems to be surrounded by two interconnected elements, which symbolizes two dancing dragons.

It is the third highest in China. Many windows glisten in the sun and are somewhat reminiscent of the scales of giant reptiles. The building contains many offices, an intercontinental hotel, shops and an observatory. There is a rooftop garden with a swimming pool.

Since the top of the building is equipped with lighting, the skyscraper looks like a lighthouse at night and can be used as a landmark in a dark city.

WITH different sides this building looks new every time, it owes this feature to its unique design.

7th place. Petronas Twin Towers - 452 meters, Malaysia

These sparkling towers are located in the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur. They look like two giant ears of corn connected by a bridge.

Petronas Towers (Davidlohr Bueso / flickr.com)

They are considered a true masterpiece of modern architecture. And they are on our list of buildings. On the plan of the entire complex, you can see that the buildings look like an eight-pointed star. One of the symbols of the Muslim world.

Two identical skyscrapers are connected by a pedestrian span. Each tower has 88 floors. The construction of this facility took 6 years and $ 800 million. The area of ​​all its premises would fit 48 football fields.

As in other similar buildings, offices of various companies are located here. At the very bottom, there is a huge shopping center spread over six floors. There are many high-end shops in it.

In the area around the towers there is a vast park with a pool and a fountain, where you can see a unique sight - the singing fountains. For a while, these towers were fortunate enough to be the tallest skyscrapers on the planet.

Petronas Twin Towers - 452 meters, Malaysia (Simon Clancy / flickr.com)

6th place. International Commerce Center (ICC, China) - 484 meters, China

The building has 118 floors. The third tallest building in China is located in autonomous region People's Republic of China.

It rises above 4,000 other high-rise buildings in Hong Kong. Year of construction - 2010.

It is located in the west of Hong Kong in the Kowloon area on Unity Square. It was originally conceived as a building with an even greater height. But due to the ban on the construction of buildings that exceed the surrounding mountains, the number of storeys was reduced.

There is a shopping center at the very bottom. An observation deck is open for tourists, which is located on the 100th floor.

Above are luxury five-star restaurants and a hotel that includes a presidential suite on the 117th floor. One day in it costs 100 thousand Hong Kong dollars. You can get to the last floors, or go down, using 30 operating elevators.

The building of the World Financial Center is located in one of the major cities PRC - in Shanghai. This is the tallest building in China.

It owes its fantastic appearance to the American architect David Mallot. The skyscraper is popular and has received the nickname “opener” among the local population.

Why he got such a name can be guessed by its appearance. A souvenir is popular with tourists coming here - a drink opener in the shape of this famous skyscraper.

On the hundredth floor, you can see the city from a mark - 472 m. The hotel, which is located on the upper floors, was for some time the tallest hotel in the world.

The shape of the opening on the top of the building was originally supposed to be round, but the authorities decided that this symbolized the land of the rising sun, so the window began to have a trapezoidal shape.

4th place. Taipei 101 - 509 meters, Taiwan

Located in the capital of Taiwan - Taipei. It has 101 floors. More than one and a half billion dollars were spent on design and construction work.

The construction was quite expensive. It was required to build a skyscraper that had to withstand the strongest earthquakes and typhoons. Enough attention has been paid to the exterior too. It is built in the style of postmodernism and has various elements of Asian culture and European innovations.

Taipei 101 - 509 meters, Taiwan (中 岑 范姜 / flickr.com)

3rd place. World Trade Center 1 - 541 meters, USA

It is located in the New York area, Manhattan. This is the tallest skyscraper in the United States. Together with the antenna, the height of the structure is 541 meters, and without the antenna - 417 meters. Making simple calculations, you can find out how many meters the spire adds to the building. Its length is 124 meters.

The building was built exactly on the spot where the Twin Towers that were killed in the disaster were located until 2001. The new skyscraper is named the Freedom Tower. This building is the first of a complex of skyscrapers that was supposed to be a reminder of the tragedy of 9/11.

The memorial was inaugurated in 2011 by the current and previous presidents of the United States. Exactly where the foundations of the two towers were, two large pools were made. Construction work began in 2006 and was scheduled for completion in 2013. At the time of construction, the Freedom Tower was the tallest skyscraper in the United States.

Freedom Tower, New York (Phil Dolby / flickr.com)

2nd place. Abraj Al Beit - 601 meters, Kuwait

It is a tall tower with a huge clock that looks like Big Ben in London. Time can also be viewed from four sides. The diameter of the dials is 43 meters. Their height is 400 meters. It is the largest and tallest watch in the world.

A spire, 45 meters long, connects the clock on the tower and the golden crescent - a religious symbol. The facility is located in Mecca. This is the tallest building in Kuwait. Located on the other side of the Al-Haram Mosque, where the great Islamic shrine is located.

The building houses a hotel called the Royal Clock Tower. Pilgrims visiting Mecca stop here. Construction work on this tower was completed in 2012.

1st place. Burj Khalifa - 828 meters, United Arab Emirates

Many are interested in which building is the tallest and how many floors are in it? This is Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. This is the tallest building in the world.

Burj Khalifa - 828 meters, United Arab Emirates (Mohammed J / flickr.com)

It is much higher in height than all the skyscrapers and structures of the planet. The tallest skyscraper looks like a giant mirror stalagmite.

Another name is Burj Dubai. The building was erected at the beginning of 2010. It has 163 floors. The floors of this building are almost entirely residential.

There is a hotel, various offices and a shopping center. An observation deck is equipped for visitors. There is also an underground parking lot that can accommodate 3,000 cars.

Availability modern technologies and building materials provides architects around the planet with the opportunity to continually create bold designs for the world's tallest buildings and make them a reality. As a result, every year in different countries not only thousands of ordinary buildings appear, but also hundreds of skyscrapers. Some of them are typical, while others are so unique and recognizable that they bear the title of true architectural masterpieces. This article further presents a ranking of the 10 tallest buildings in the world in ascending order, taking into account the spiers and masts on their roofs.

Nanjing Greenland

This building is also known as the "Zifeng Tower", and it is located in the Chinese city of Nanjing. It consists of 89 floors and has a height of 450 meters. This skyscraper was commissioned in 2010. Now the high-rise, which is built in the shape of a triangle, has a mixed purpose. In particular, the lower floors are home to various shops and restaurants, while the upper ones are used as offices. The observation deck at level 72 offers beautiful views of the local surroundings and the Yangtze River. Three conceptual positions became characteristic of the project - the aforementioned Chinese river, landscaped gardens and motifs of local mythology (dragons with iconography on the columns).

Petronas Towers

On the ninth position in the rating "The tallest building in the world" is the symbol of Kuala Lumpur (the capital of Malaysia) - "Twin Towers". The then prime minister of the state, Mahathir Mohamad, took an active part in their design. It was he who came up with the idea of ​​building them in the Islamic style, and more specifically, in the form of eight-pointed stars. Both skyscrapers were built in 1998, consist of 88 floors and are 451.9 meters high. Inside they have conference rooms, art galleries and offices. The project cost has reached 800 million US dollars. An interesting feature is that the structures were erected on soft ground, so piles about 100 meters deep were driven into the ground to strengthen it. This foundation is the most powerful on the planet to date. A covered walkway is constructed between the towers, one of the important purposes of which is fire safety.

International Commerce Center in Hong Kong

The height of this structure is 484 m. It consists of 118 floors and was commissioned in the city of Kowloon in 2010. Mostly it houses offices, shops and shopping centers. The top seventeen floors are occupied by a five-star hotel with a huge swimming pool on the last one. Initially, it was planned to erect a 102-storey structure with a height of 574 meters, but due to the ban on building buildings above the surrounding mountains, the project was revised.

Shanghai World Financial Center

This representative of the "World's tallest building" rating was built in 2008. The World Financial Center in Shanghai is 492 meters high and has 101 floors. The skyscraper boasts several prizes and awards at once as the best skyscraper in 2008 and the owner of the highest observation deck on the planet. The structure has passed the test for seismic stability and is capable of withstanding an earthquake with a power of up to seven balls. Moreover, even at the design stage, the architects provided three options for saving people during a fire. There is a protected area on every twelfth floor, where you can hide from a fire or wait for rescuers.

Taipei 101

At the sixth position in the list is a skyscraper from Taipei - the capital of Taiwan. The building consists of 101 floors, and its height is 508 meters. Built in 2004, the high-rise building harmoniously combines ancient Chinese architecture and modern traditions postmodernism. A giant pendulum ball weighing 660 tons is installed between the 87th and 91st floors, which significantly reduces the likelihood of collapse in the event of an earthquake or hurricane. The structure, which mainly consists of steel, aluminum and glass, is supported by 380 concrete supports extending 80 meters underground.

CTF Finance Center

This skyscraper is located in the Chinese city of Guangzhou. It is also known as the International Financial Center. The skyscraper was built in the style of modernism, and was officially opened in 2010. As of today, it belongs to the category of "the tallest buildings under construction in the world", since work on its construction is still ongoing. According to the plans of the architects, they should be completed in 2016. Then it will be a whole complex consisting of two towers. The height of the completed, western building, consisting of 103 floors, is now 441 meters. The complex also includes a 28-storey structure, which is connected to the existing tower through a 4-storey common basement. The impact on the building of air currents is practically reduced to zero due to its streamlined shape.

Freedom Tower

Located in the American city of New York, the Freedom Tower is a 541.3 meter high skyscraper. It should be noted that this is the tallest building in the world, which is used exclusively for offices. Moreover, it is the largest high-rise in the entire Western Hemisphere. Freedom Tower has become the main structure in the new World Trade Center, erected to replace the complex destroyed in the 2001 terrorist attack. The building itself has a roof height of 417 meters, and the remaining 124 meters fall on a 758-ton spire installed on it. From the outside, it is faced with glass with a bluish tint, so it looks very beautiful.

Royal clock tower

The three leaders in the top of the tallest buildings in the world are closed by the representative of Saudi Arabia. The facility is located in the world famous city Mecca and stands at 601 meters. It has 102 floors and was officially opened in 2012. The skyscraper is the largest on the planet in terms of building volume and boasts the highest located clock on Earth. The mosque with the main Islamic shrine (Kaaba) is right across the road. The Royal Clock Tower houses a hotel that proudly bears the title of the highest in the world. It can simultaneously accommodate about 100 thousand people.

Shanghai tower

In second place in the rating "The tallest building in the world" is above tall building under the name Shanghai Tower, the construction of which is currently being completed in the Chinese city of the same name. According to the project, its height will be 632 meters, and the number of floors - 128. The cost of its implementation, according to preliminary estimates, will amount to 4.2 billion US dollars. It is expected to be officially commissioned in 2015, despite the fact that construction work started in 1993. The frame itself has already been erected, and now only finishing work is underway. The skyscraper is multifunctional and consists of nine separate vertical zones. The finish is made with durable glass, which provides not only protection from external weather conditions for people, but also natural ventilation.

Burj Khalifa

The rating of the tallest buildings in the world is confidently headed by the Burj Khalifa, a skyscraper from the city of Dubai (UAE). Its summit is at an altitude of 828 meters. The structure was built in 2010 and consists of 136 floors. In its shape, it resembles a stalagmite. Initially, the object was planned as a city within a city, which will have its own lawns, parks and boulevards. There are three separate entrances to the skyscraper. From 1st floor to 39th, there are offices and the Armani hotel. This is not surprising, since the design of the hotel was developed personally by Giorgio Armani. On the site from 44 to 108, the architects built 900 apartments, and from 111 to 154, they equipped office premises. There is an observation deck on the 124th floor.

Without a doubt, located in the city of Dubai, the tallest building in the world boggles the human imagination. Be that as it may, many skyscrapers and dozens of skyscrapers appear on our planet every year. Many of them, even at the construction stage, may well be considered as potential competitors to the representatives of the above rating. A striking evidence of this is the fact that some of them are already considered real architectural masterpieces and are recognizable all over the planet. Zhongnan Center (China), Lotte World Tower (South Korea) and World Tower (Mumbai) are considered the most iconic objects that can now be safely included in the list of "Tallest buildings in the world of the future".

The first of the mentioned structures, according to the project, should have a height of 730 meters and consist of 138 floors. If all the work is completed on schedule, then in 2020 it will be officially opened. After that, the building will become the tallest in China. The project is estimated at $ 4.2 billion.

The Lotte World Tower in Seoul is expected to reach 556 meters. Its construction should be completed in 2016. The architects plan to place offices, shops and a hotel inside.

As for the World Tower, the building should receive its first visitors next year. The highest building now in Mumbai - the Imperial Tower - this building will surpass almost twice. In addition to shopping centers and offices, it is planned to build about three hundred luxury apartments here, the cost of which will start at $ 1.5 million.

Burj Khalifa is the tallest building in Dubai and the tallest skyscraper in the world. In shape, the building resembles a stalagmite, which rushes up to 828 meters. The building has 163 floors with 9 hotels and a system of fountains. The total cost of the construction is estimated at $ 4.1 billion. And this is even more for the most amazing facts about Burj Khalifa.

1. Tallest building in the world

It is common knowledge that Burj Khalifa is the most tall building worldwide. However, how high is it compared to other monstrous structures? The height of Burj Khalifa is 828 meters, and the height of the second largest building in the world (Shanghai Tower) is 632 meters. The difference is more than obvious. Also Burj Khalifa is three times taller than the Eiffel Tower.

2. Inside the building

Those who think the Burj Khalifa is very impressive from the outside have simply not been inside a skyscraper. The highest observation deck is at an altitude of 452 meters. In total, the building has 164 floors, 1 of which is underground, and as many as 58 elevators that travel at a speed of 10 meters per second (this is one of the fastest elevators in the world). Also, Burj Khalifa has 2,957 parking spaces, 304 hotels and 904 apartments. Interestingly, the Burj Khalifa has a special elevator system designed for evacuation during a fire.

3. The skyscraper was designed by the Americans and built by a South Korean company

While Burj Khalifa is located in Dubai (the original name of the skyscraper is Burj Dubai), the building was designed by the American firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. Chicago engineers helped design a special support structure that resembles a three-pointed star. The construction of the building was entrusted to the South Korean company Samsung Engineering and Construction.

4. Several records

Everyone knows that the Burj Khalifa is the world's tallest building. In fact, not only this record belongs to the Dubai skyscraper. It is the tallest free-standing building, the building with the highest residential floor, the building with the most floors, the building with the highest elevators and the second tallest observation deck (the highest observation deck is at the Canton TV Tower).

5. What was needed for the construction

It took a lot of time and effort to build such a titanic building almost a kilometer long (namely, 6 years and 22 million man-hours). On especially busy days, more than 12,000 workers were at the construction site at a time.

6. Huge weight

For the construction of a huge building it took great amount materials. One aluminum went so much that it would be enough to create 5 A380 airbuses. Also, 55,000 tons of reinforcing steel and 110,000 tons of concrete were spent. This is roughly the weight of 100,000 elephants. And if you take and fold the reinforcement from the building in a row, then it would stretch for a quarter of the Earth.

7. Heat resistance

It is very hot in Dubai, with an average temperature of 41 degrees in summer. In July 2002, Dubai recorded its highest temperature of 52 degrees. Naturally, a building built in this country must withstand extreme temperature fluctuations. This is why more than 300 Chinese cladding experts were hired to develop a cladding system capable of resisting local temperatures.

8. Power consumption

Naturally, a monstrous amount of resources is required for a normal life in such a huge building. For example, the Burj Khalifa requires about 950,000 liters of water every day (while in Dubai, on average, they use about 200-300 liters of water per day). Also, the building consumes a huge amount of electricity (approximately as much as 360,000 hundred-watt bulbs "eat").

9. Cleaning the skyscraper

How do they clean and wash 26,000 glass panels that always look perfectly smooth. Responsible for this are 12 cars, which weigh about 13 tons each, moving along special rails on the outside of the building. The cars are serviced by 36 people.

10. Floral design

Burj Khalifa's design was inspired by the hymenokallis, a flower that has long petals that radiate outward from the center. The three wings of the Burj Khalifa spread out like these petals.

Royal Tower, taller than the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa in the United Arab Emirates by 167 meters, is being built in Saudi Arabia and will be the first building on the planet, whose height is close to a kilometer. The $ 1.2 billion project, located in Jeddah, will house luxury condominiums, office space, an observatory, the Four Seasons Hotel and the world's tallest terrace on the 157th floor (still quite far from the top of the building, by the way). The construction of the skyscraper officially began last year, and the building should be completed in 2019.

2. Shanghai Tower

Construction of a 121-storey Shanghai Tower in China, worth $ 4.2 billion, begun in 1993, was completed earlier this year and is now undergoing finishing work. Now it is the second tallest building in the world, but the official opening will be in 2015. Yet millions of people have already seen the top view thanks to the dizzying images and videos taken by two Russian daredevils who illegally climbed to the top last year and went viral on the internet. The multifunctional skyscraper consists of nine different vertical zones and is surrounded by a layer of transparent glass to protect it from the weather and provide natural ventilation.

3. Dubai Pearl

Between the design of artificial islands in the form of parts of the world, the largest shopping center, known to man, and, of course, the tallest building in the world, someone decided that there should be a luxurious building in Dubai, similar to an ordinary apartment building, ominously spreading its legs. Construction of a 73-storey Dubai Pearl overlooking the Persian Gulf started in 2009 and should be completed in 2016. The planned inner city will have four towers connected by a sky bridge and an 1,800-seat premium theater that will host the Dubai International Film Festival.

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4. Agora Garden

Already in 2016 Agora garden in Taipei, building shaped double helix, will become a compromise between the creations of mother nature and man. The twisty 20-story luxury building will be green in every sense of the word, with balconies on each floor supporting gardens, and integrated life support systems, including solar panels and rainwater recycling.

5. World One

When construction is completed next year, the 117-story skyscraper World one will become the highest residential building on the planet and undoubtedly the tallest building in Mumbai, almost twice the size of the 61-story Imperial Tower, currently holding the latter title. World One will be home to some of Mumbai's richest residents and will include 300 luxurious three and four bedroom apartments (starting at $ 1.5 million) designed by Giorgio Armani's Armani / Casa studio. Funnily enough, World One won't be able to hold onto the title of tallest building in Mumbai for long, as the Indian Tower under construction will have 126 floors.

6. King Abdullah Oil Research and Development Center (KARSARC)

Closest to earth on this list, but no less mind-blowing KARSARC in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, looks more like the lair of a James Bond villain than a multinational non-profit center. The futuristic crystal-like design is the brainchild of the iconic Iraqi-born architect Zaha Hadid, who took the interweaving of hexagonal cells as a basis for the design. The construction of the project began in 2009, and at this moment only the steel frame was completed, so it is unclear when the facility will be opened.

7. Zhongnan Center in Suzhou

Just recently construction began on a 730-meter, 138-story center in Suzhou, China, and it still has a long, very long way... But if the $ 4.5 billion sharpened project is completed on schedule in 2020, it will be the tallest building in China and the third tallest building in the world. The tower with the hotel, offices and living quarters will be located with the almost completed 69-story East Gate skyscraper, which, as has been repeatedly noted, looks like a huge pair of trousers.

8. Lotte World Tower

Significantly taller than all other buildings in Seoul, South Korea, a 556-meter, 123-story skyscraper will soar above the horizon. Lotte World Tower, when it will be finished in 2016. The building will contain (from bottom to top): shops, offices, apartments, hotels and an observation deck at the top. It will also noticeably overtake the extraordinary Ryugyong Pyramid Hotel in North Korea and will become the tallest building on the Korean Peninsula.

9. Mountain resort Davang

Tired of hotels that don't gracefully float between two rocks above an abandoned quarry and a lake? Chinese mountain resort Dawang will be waiting for you from 2016. Stretching 170 meters in length, the resort will include an "icy world of entertainment", an indoor ski complex, a water park and hanging gardens.

10. Songjiang Hotel

Obviously, this hotel nestled among rocks and lakes is the next on the list of high-end vacation spots in China. Like the mountain resort of Davang, the hotel Songjiang is located in a quarry, and the hotel located not far from Shanghai will be built right on the walls of the quarry, and a waterfall will flow down its facade. Well, if you cannot enjoy the view from one of the upper floors, go to the lower ones - they will be under water.

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It is believed that the first skyscraper in the world was built in 1891 in the United States - the Home Insurance Building, erected in Chicago. The height of the 10-storey building was only 42 m, however, on end of XIX century it seemed cyclopean. The construction stood only until 1931, since it was replaced by much taller buildings.

Where are the tallest skyscrapers in the world?

The United States has long lost its leadership in the number of skyscrapers - at the beginning of this century, America was confidently pushed aside to second place by China. In Hong Kong alone, there are 281 skyscrapers, with another 117 built in Shanghai. The two most "high-rise" cities in the United States - New York and Chicago boast only 226 and 110 skyscrapers, respectively.

As for the ultra-tall buildings, which include houses over 300 m high, here the Arab Emirates and India hold the palm - 23 such mega-skyscrapers have been built in Dubai, and 18 ultra-tall buildings in Mumbai. Well, the tallest structures - true champions, which will be discussed in our rating, are concentrated in only four countries - Saudi Arabia, China, USA and South Korea.

TOP 10 tallest skyscrapers in the world

10. International Commerce Center in Hong Kong (China): height - 484 m, 118 floors

The construction of this skyscraper was completed in 2010, and, interestingly, it was erected by the operator of the Hong Kong subway. Initially, it was assumed that the building would be 75 m higher, in this case it would be included in the five tallest skyscrapers in the world. However, at the design stage it turned out that in Hong Kong it was forbidden to build houses above the local landmark, the Victoria Mountains and the building had to be "cut back".

However, all the same, in one of the areas it received the world championship, becoming the world's highest hotel, because the upper floors (from 102 to 112) are occupied by the five-star Ritz-Carlton hotel.

The rest of the space is devoted to the offices of world famous companies, luxury restaurants, living quarters and even swimming pools. The total area of ​​the premises of the Hong Kong Tower is 262.2 thousand square meters. m, and its visitors are served at once by 83 elevators, of which 30 are high-speed ones. The building is the center of the architectural ensemble of the multi-storey part of Hong Kong and fits well into the urban landscape. Every year it attracts at least a million tourists who wish to see the city from the observation deck located on the hundredth floor. This pleasure costs about 13 dollars.

9. World Financial Center in Shanghai (China): height - 492 m, 101 floors

The unofficial name of this unusual skyscraper is “opener”. And, indeed, the upper part of the building is very reminiscent of a simple tool for uncorking bottles. This shape is not only a striking design element, but also an ingenious engineering solution that allows you to reduce the wind pressure on the structure and increase its stability.

Initially, it was planned to install a giant round window with a diameter of 46 m in place of the upper hole, but this idea provoked protest from the Shanghai people, since the window would resemble the coat of arms of Japan (the rising sun), and the Chinese, as you know, do not like the Japanese.

The area of ​​premises of the Shanghai World Financial Center is 373.3 thousand square meters. m, they house hotels, restaurants, conference rooms and numerous offices. There is an observation deck on the top floor. The Shanghai Tower's architects are proud of its enhanced security. Despite its gigantic size, it will withstand an earthquake of up to 7 points, and every 12th floor is equipped with a reinforced frame, reinforced with alloy steel and equipped with special system ventilation. This makes it possible to use such places for the evacuation of people in the event of fires and other emergencies.

8. Skyscraper Taipei 101 in Taipei (Taiwan): height - 508 m, 101 floors

The architects of this building claim that in reality it has 106 floors, since 5 are underground and are used as parking lots and to accommodate technical services. In any case, this skyscraper is the tallest in Taiwan, it is a source of pride and a visiting card of this small state. The building was built in 2003 and has an original design in the style of ancient Chinese pagodas. Taipei 101 is equipped with incredibly fast elevators. They are capable of speeds up to 60 km / h (like a car!), So that from the foot to the observation deck on the 89th floor, you can rush in just 39 seconds. Since Taiwan is an earthquake-prone island, the building is equipped with a unique stabilizer.

A giant pendulum ball weighing 660 tons was mounted between the 87th and 91st floors, designed to smooth out the vibrations of the structure when strong wind and in case of earthquakes.

The area of ​​the premises of the building reaches 412.5 thousand square meters. m, there are hundreds of shops, clubs, restaurants, hotels and, of course, offices of large companies. An interesting feature of the skyscraper is its unusual lighting system, which changes color depending on the day of the week. Thanks to this, even the most forgetful Taipei always knows whether it is Saturday today or Monday, because for this it is enough to look at Taipei 101, which is visible from every corner of the Taiwanese capital.

7. CTF Financial Center in Guangzhou (China): height - 530 m, 111 floors

The CTF Finance Center Tower in Guangzhou is one of the youngest skyscrapers on the planet - completed in 2016, bringing the most cutting edge engineering to the building. It is here that the fastest elevators in the world operate, rising at speeds up to 75.6 km / h or 21 m / s! The total area of ​​the premises of the building reaches 398 thousand square meters. m. In addition to traditional offices, the CTF Finance Center tower houses hotels, shops, cafes and even 414 residential apartments.

During rush hour there are up to 30 thousand people at the same time, i.e. population of a small town. Another feature is the cladding of facades with real ceramics, which no ultra-high building on Earth can boast of.

The architects chose this decision in order to emphasize the continuity of CTF Finance Center with traditions - the first American skyscrapers of the 19th and early 20th centuries were decorated with beautiful terracotta panels. The stability of the structure is ensured by its special stepped shape, which made it possible to bring the wind resistance to almost zero. Special terraces are arranged on the ledges of the skyscraper, which are extensions of conference rooms, therefore CTF Finance Center - popular place for congresses, meetings and forums.

6. World Trade Center 1 or Freedom Tower in New York, USA: height - 541 m, 104 floors

This skyscraper was completed in 2014. It was erected on the site of the destroyed World Trade Center twin towers in the attack and is part of a memorial in memory of the victims. The building has become the tallest in the United States, and it also holds the American record for the height of a spire (124 m), which is made of steel and weighs 758 tons. The area of ​​the internal premises of the Freedom Tower is 242 thousand square meters. m, there are numerous offices, media offices, restaurants and viewing platforms.

The pride of the architects is a gigantic hall 24 m high, which occupies several lower floors at once. From here, by high-speed elevators, you can get to almost anywhere in the building.

The exterior decoration of the building is also quite unusual, which consists of more than two thousand prism-shaped elements made of blue glass measuring 4x1.2 m each. They create a whimsical play of light, thanks to which the facades sparkle and sparkle, and the skyscraper itself seems weightlessly voluminous. At the top of the Freedom Tower's spire is a super-powerful floodlight that sends a vertical beam of light 300 meters high, visible from anywhere in New York City. Since the construction of the Freedom Tower uses reinforced concrete and high strength steel, the building is considered one of the safest skyscrapers in America.

The height of World Trade Center 1 in traditional American feet is exactly 1776 - it was this year that the United States gained independence from Great Britain, which is another symbol that this skyscraper bears.

5. Lotte World Tower in Seoul, South Korea: height - 555 m, 123 floors

This skyscraper is the "youngest" among the super-tall buildings in the world - it was fully opened only in April 2017. The Lotte Tower can be called a "long-term construction" - the building began to be erected back in 2005, but it soon became clear that it was forbidden to build houses of this height next to the local airport. It was possible to eliminate this limitation only in 2009, but even after that the construction was very delayed.

In general, the cost of approvals and permits amounted to $ 100 million - this figure was announced by the chairman of the developer company, so bureaucracy and corruption in South Korea, apparently, is still the same.

Today, the skyscraper is a gem, one might say the "main building" of Seoul and attracts thousands of tourists. The area of ​​its premises reaches 304 thousand square meters. m, which houses hundreds of boutiques, offices, restaurants and hotels. The middle floors are occupied by residential apartments, and at the very top are prestigious VIP rooms rented by world famous companies. The observation gallery occupies the last few floors, which can simultaneously accommodate up to 900 people. It is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the highest observation deck (478 m) with a glass floor. It costs 23 dollars to enter.

4. Pingan International Financial Center in Shenzhen, China: height - 599 m, 115 floors

The initial design of this building involved the construction of a 660 m high skyscraper by installing a large spire. In this case, the building would come out on top in China and on the second highest in the world. However, the development company Ping An was forced to abandon such an ambitious plan, since the financial center is located near the Shenzhen airport and could interfere with flights. The developers did not skimp on finishing materials - the facade of the building is faced with light-colored plates of natural stone, which gives the building sophistication and intelligence.

The center of Pingan has a wide base and extensive floors - the total area of ​​its premises is 468.6 thousand square meters. m, which is noticeably more than that of most skyscrapers comparable in height.

Since Shenzhen is something of China's Silicon Valley, the offices in the mega-skyscraper were bought not only by financial institutions, but also by numerous electronics companies, service centers, and IT firms. In addition, the building houses restaurants, hotels and viewing platforms for tourists. The house was commissioned only in 2017, so many floors of the building are still empty and waiting for their owners.

3. Royal Clock Tower (Abraj al-Beit) in Mecca, Saudi Arabia: height - 601 m, 120 floors

This unique skyscraper is head and shoulders above any of its competitors in terms of indoor area, which reaches a record 1.5 million square meters. m. This is due to the fact that the Abraj al-Beit complex, in addition to the central tower, includes six more buildings with a height of 240 to 260 m. Their main purpose is to receive Muslim pilgrims who make the Hajj to Mecca in order to see the main shrine of Islam - the sacred stone Kaaba. It is located literally 100 meters from the skyscraper inside a cubic building, and you can contemplate it directly from the windows of the building.

Each year, the hotels of the Clock Tower welcome up to 100 thousand visitors, with a giant shopping center, parking for 800 cars and numerous restaurants offering dishes that comply with Islamic canons.

A distinctive feature of the skyscraper is a giant clock mounted at its top. The dial is 43 m in diameter and the hands are 17 and 22 m long, making the timer visible from many parts of Mecca. The second unique feature of the Royal Tower is the world's largest gilded crescent with a diameter of 23 m, mounted on a spire with a height of 43 m. The building is equipped with an unusual illumination system, which is created by 44 powerful floodlights, 21 thousand flashing lights and more than 2.2 million LEDs.

2. Shanghai Tower, China: height - 632 m, 128 floors

This building was commissioned in 2016 and embodies the most advanced achievements of engineering. The skyscraper is made up of nine cylinder sections stacked one on top of the other and is equipped with double walls along its entire length. Atriums planted with exotic trees and plants are arranged between the joints of the sections - these places are called "heavenly gardens". Here you can rest your soul, enjoying the bird's-eye view of Shanghai. Double walls also have a purely practical meaning, creating an additional air gap that contributes to heat conservation.

The Shanghai Tower has a special "swirling shape", thanks to which it is able to withstand even gusts of hurricane winds with a speed of up to 51 m / s.

A spiral gutter, installed along the entire height of the structure, collects rainwater, which is then used in air conditioning and heating systems. The area of ​​the skyscraper premises is 380 thousand square meters. m - offices, shops, hotels, shopping centers and public areas are traditionally located here. Visitors are served by innovative Mitsubishi elevators moving at a speed of 18 m / s, and right on the roof of the building there is an observation deck with an amazing view of Shanghai.

1. Skyscraper Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates: height - 828 m, 163 floors

This superstructure, ahead of its time, was built back in 2010, but so far nowhere have they been able to surpass the record of its height. Burj Khalifa is not only the largest skyscraper in the world, but also the tallest structure on the planet ever built, as it surpasses even TV towers and radio masts. As conceived by the architects, the Dubai Tower was to become a "city within a city", having all the necessary utilities, its own TV channels, shops, parks, boulevards and even its own observatory. In general, this idea was realized - you can live in a skyscraper for years without even going down to the mortal earth.

Interestingly, the entire hundredth floor of the building was bought by the Indian billionaire Bavagutu Raguram Shetty, who equipped 3 apartments of 500 sq. m each.

The area of ​​premises of the Burj Khalifa is 344 thousand square meters. m, and 57 high-speed elevators serve residents and visitors. Since Dubai has a very hot climate and a lack of water, the building's designers have developed an entire system to collect it. And we are not talking about rain moisture (there is practically no rain in the UAE), but about condensate, which forms in considerable quantities inside the skyscraper. Thanks to this, even if water is cut off in all Emirates, the residents of the Burj Khalifa will not be affected.

And what about Russia? The Lakhta Center under construction in St. Petersburg will become the 11th highest in the world

The largest skyscraper in Russia today is the 95-story Federation Tower in Moscow. Its height is about 374 m, this building, the tallest in Europe, is one of the thirty largest skyscrapers in the world. However, very soon it will be surpassed by the Lakhta Center, which is being completed in St. Petersburg, which, together with the spire, will have 463 meters. This will allow it already in 2018 to take the honorable 11th place in the list of the top skyscrapers of the planet and, undoubtedly, become the largest "northern" building on Earth.

Lakhta Center will accommodate about 400 thousand square meters. m of premises, which will house the office of "Gazprom" and representative offices of many other companies.

Unlike the overly functional western skyscrapers, the St. Petersburg skyscraper has a place for a children's scientific and educational center, a medical complex, a huge planetarium, a transforming cinema and concert hall and even an amphitheater for showing water shows. At an altitude of 357 m, an observation deck is provided, from which a panorama of the whole of St. Petersburg and its northern environs will open.

Following the Lakhta Center in Russia, it is planned to put into operation a 100-storey Akhmat Tower in Grozny with a height of 435 m.