- Ostankino Tower
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Ostankino Tower Останкинская телебашня 
Record height Tallest in the world from 1967 to 1976[I] Preceded by Empire State Building Surpassed by CN Tower General information Type Observation, telecommunications, tourism Location Moscow, Russia Coordinates 55°49′11″N 37°36′42″E / 55.81972°N 37.61167°ECoordinates: 55°49′11″N 37°36′42″E / 55.81972°N 37.61167°E Construction started 1963 Completed 1967 Height Antenna spire 540.1 m (1,772.0 ft) Roof 385.4 m (1,264.4 ft) Top floor 360 m (1,181.1 ft) Technical details Floor count 120 (equivalent) Floor area 15,000 m2 (160,000 sq ft) Elevator count 11[1] Design and construction Architect Nikolai Nikitin References [2][3] Ostankino Tower (Russian: Останкинская телебашня, Ostankinskaya telebashnya) is a free-standing television and radio tower in Moscow, Russia. Standing 540 metres (1,770 ft) tall, Ostankino was designed by Nikolai Nikitin. It is a member of the World Federation of Great Towers, currently the tallest in Europe and 4th tallest in the world.[4] The tower was the first free-standing structure to exceed 500 m (1,600 ft) in height. The tower was constructed to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the October Revolution. It is named after the Ostankino district of Moscow in which it is located.[5][6]
Construction began in 1963 and was completed in 1967. Extensive use of prestressed concrete resulted in a simple and sturdy structure. It surpassed the Empire State Building to become the tallest free-standing structure in the world. It held this record for nine years until the CN Tower was completed in Toronto, Canada in 1976, which surpassed its height by 13 metres (43 ft).[7] The Ostankino Tower remained the second-tallest freestanding structure in the world for another 31 years until the Burj Khalifa surpassed both it and the CN Tower in height in 2007. The height of the tower has been surpassed by Canton Tower in Guangzhou and is expected to be surpassed by One World Trade Center in New York City, Abraj Al Bait Towers in Mecca, Shanghai Tower in Shanghai, India Tower in Mumbai and Tokyo Sky Tree in Tokyo (all under construction).[8]
Towers taller than 300 metres were built in Kiev, Tashkent, Almaty, Riga, Berlin, Vilnius, Tallinn, Yerevan, St. Petersburg and Baku.
The Ostankino Tower has remained the tallest free-standing structure in Europe for 42 years. The Russia Tower, a proposed 612-metre (2,008 ft) mixed-use skyscraper planned for the Moscow International Business Centre, was originally expected to exceed the Ostankino Tower's height. The project has been suspended due to financial difficulties and it remains unclear if construction will resume.[9]
A 1994 plan to increase the tower's height to 561 meters by adding an antenna was not implemented for lack of funding.[4]
Diagram of the tallest TV-Towers
Contents
Accidents
The tower on fire on 27 August 2000The tower caught fire on 27 August 2000, killing three people. In addition, television and radio signals were disrupted around Moscow. The fire broke out at a height of about 458 m (1,502.6 ft), or approximately 98 metres (322 ft) above the observation platform and the Seventh Heaven restaurant, after a short-circuit in wiring belonging to a paging company.[10] The fire necessitated an evacuation of all visitors and staff from those locations. According to Russian news agencies, the evacuation was complete 90 minutes after the start of the fire. The loss was substantial due to the age and poor maintenance of the electronic equipment, much of which was installed in the 1960s. In addition, the tower had become increasingly packed with equipment.[11] The failure of the fire suppression systems allowed the fire to destroy most of the tower's interior. Although more than 300 firefighters and other emergency workers were called in, firemen were forced to haul heavy equipment, including chemical fire extinguishers, by hand up the tower to halt the fire. Temporary firewalls of asbestos placed 70 metres (230 ft) stopped further spread .[10] The fire knocked out virtually all television broadcasts in Moscow and the surrounding regions. The only television station unaffected was the private NTV station and the Chennai relay station, but the government decreed that state channels took priority, and as such, the RTR TV channel began transmitting to several Moscow districts.[12]
The fire caused the tower's upper spire to tilt slightly, triggering fears the tower might collapse. Subsequent inspection determined that although the structure sustained heavy damage, the tower was not in danger of collapse. Immediately, efforts began to rebuild the tower, which proved to be a long and expensive task.[13][14]
The fire was the third disaster in Russia in a month, following an explosion in a Moscow underground passage that killed 12 people and the sinking of submarine Kursk in the Barents Sea in which 118 died. Russian President Vladimir Putin, stated that "This latest accident shows the shape of our vital installations and the overall state of our country. We should not fail to see major problems in the country behind this accident, and we should not forget the economy. Whether or not such accidents happen again in the future will depend on how we work in this vital direction."[15][16]
On 1 July 2004, Austrian BASE jumper Christina Grubelnik struck the tower during her descent, receiving a concussion and losing consciousness. Her parachute snagged on a lower-level service platform and she was rescued by Russian emergency services.[17][18]
On 25 March 2005 the first elevator was tested and put into service after the fire in August 2000. The Seventh Heaven restaurant has remained closed since the accident.
On 25 May 2007, the tower again caught fire, though it was less serious than the 2000 fire and was isolated to a platform on the outside of the tower. All people inside the tower were evacuated and the fire was successfully extinguished, with no casualties.[19]
360° panorama from observation deck of the Ostankino TV tower
Transmissions
TV stations
Station Channel Frequency ERP Channel One 1 40 kW TV Center 3 40 kW Russia 2 6 1 kW NTV 8 40 kW Russia 1 11 60 kW DTV 23 10 kW Euronews 25 10 kW STS-Moscow 27 5 7TV 29 10 kW Domashny 31 20 kW Russia K 33 20 kW TNT 35 5 kW Petersburg - Channel 5 44 5 kW TV-3 46 10 kW REN 49 20 kW Muz-TV 51 20 kW Zvezda 57 5 kW 2×2 60 5 kW TV stations (DVB-T)
Station Channel Frequency ERP First multiplex: (Channel One, Russia 1, Russia 2, Russia K, Russia 24, Bibigon, NTV, Channel 5) 30 1 kW ООО «Цифровое ТРВ» (encoded): (DVisionLive, DVisionNews, DVisionSpice, TV1000) 32 1 kW Sport 2 HD 34 1 kW FM stations
Station Frequency ERP "Radio Russia", "Radio Podmoskovie" (5:00–1:00) 66.44 MHz 15.0 kW "Mayak" 67.22 MHz 15.0 kW "Radio Yunost" 68.84 MHz 15.0 kW "Russian Radio" 71.30 MHz 10.0 kW "Orpheus" 72.14 MHz 15.0 kW "Radio Retro" 72.92 MHz 15.0 kW "Echo of Moscow" 73.82 MHz 10.0 kW "Business FM" 87.50 MHz 5.0 kW "Radio Retro" 88.30 MHz 1.0 kW "Echo of Moscow" 91.20 MHz 5.0 kW "Culture" 91.60 MHz 5.0 kW "Kommersant FM" 93.60 MHz 5.0 kW "My family" 94.80 MHz 5.0 kW "Rock FM" 95.20 MHz 5.0 kW "Vesti FM" 97.60 MHz 5.0 kW "Kino FM" 98.00 MHz 10.0 kW "Free radio" 98.40 MHz 5.0 kW "Orpheus" 99.20 MHz 5.0 kW "Finam FM" 99.60 MHz 5.0 kW "Classic Radio" 100.90 MHz 5.0 kW "Dance FM" 101.2 MHz 10.0 kW "Monte Carlo" 102.10 MHz 5.0 kW "Radio Maximum" 103.7 MHz 10.0 kW "Russian Radio" 105.70 MHz 10.0 kW "Europa Plus" 106.2 MHz 10.0 kW DVB-T stations
Station Frequency "Radio Russia" (24 hours), "Mayak", "Vesti FM" 543 MHz "Voice of Russia" 575 MHz See also
- List of tallest buildings and structures in the world
- List of tallest structures in the former Soviet Union
- List of towers
References
- ^ Ostankino Tele Tower at Skyscraperpage.com
- ^ Ostankino Tower at Emporis
- ^ Ostankino Tower at SkyscraperPage
- ^ a b "Ostankino Tower". Emporis Research. http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=111722. Retrieved 2008-01-07.
- ^ Fire at television tower offers new evidence of Russia's decay, Associated Press (reprinted by the Independent), August 28, 2000.
- ^ "Russia's Tallest TV Tower Was Created as Symbol of USSR's Power". Pravda.ru. 2009-09-21. http://english.pravda.ru/russia/history/30-09-2009/109599-ostankino_tower-0. Retrieved 2009-10-05.
- ^ "What if the CN Tower Caught Fire?". CBC News (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). 2000-11-10. http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2000/08/28/CN000828.html. Retrieved 2007-06-26.
- ^ List of towers under construction on SkyscraperPages.com
- ^ Russia Tower May Find a New Home by Jessica Bachman, The Moscow Times, Issue 4085, February 13, 2009.
- ^ a b Firefighters struggle against blaze in Moscow television tower by Nick Wadhams, The Independent, August 28, 2000.
- ^ Russian TV knocked out as fire rages through 1,800ft tower by Barry Renfrew, The Independent, August 28, 2000
- ^ Bodies recovered from Moscow TV tower fire. CNN.com, August 28, 2000.
- ^ Russia tower fire 'under control', CNN.com, August 28, 2000.
- ^ Four feared trapped in burning Moscow tower, CNN.com, August 28, 2000.
- ^ Fire in 1,800ft TV tower adds to Russians' feeling of doom by Helen Womackin, The Independent, August 29, 2000.
- ^ August, the Cruelest Month by Yuri Zarakhovich, CNN.com. September 4, 2000.
- ^ Article about the accident (in Dutch). radio.nl
- ^ AP Worldstream (July 1, 2004) Austrian parachutist injured, knocked unconscious in jump from Moscow TV tower. www.highbeam.com
- ^ Fire out at Moscow landmark tower. BBC News
External links
- Ostankino Television Tower
- BBC: Moscow's TV tower saved
- Ostankino Tower at Structurae
- Ostankino Tower Above the Clouds at EnglishRussia.com
- Ostankino Tele Tower at Skyscraperpage.com
- Building Tallest Tower at EnglishRussia.com
Records Preceded by
Empire State BuildingWorld's tallest free-standing structure
540 m (1772 ft)
1967–1976Succeeded by
CN TowerTowers in Russia by region and year Moscow Moscow Kremlin towers · b. 1491-1680 • Ivan the Great Bell Tower · 1543 • Sukharev Tower · 1695-1934 • Menshikov Tower · 1707 • Shukhov Tower · 1922 • Ostankino Tower · 1967 • Moscow Octod Tower · 2006
Moscow Oblast Taldom transmitter · 19?? • Moscow Radio Centre 13 · 1989St. Petersburg Admiralty Tower · 1718 • Pevcheskaya Tower · 1882 • Saint Petersburg TV Tower · 1962 • Okhta Center Tower · 2010 (planned)Leningrad Oblast Kaliningrad Oblast Bolshakovo transmitter · 1974Krasnoyarsk Krai Sverdlovsk Oblast Leaning Tower of Nevyansk · 1732 • Yekaterinburg TV Tower · 1983Republic of Tatarstan Söyembikä Tower · 1549 or 1552Nizhny Novgorod Oblast Shukhov tower · 1929Kaluga Oblast Obninsk Meteorological tower · 1958Krasnodar Krai Novorossiysk TV Tower · 1996Vladimir Oblast Golden Gate · 1164Others 3803 KM · 1954 (Typical television tower)See also: List of tallest towers in the world, List of tallest buildings and structures in the worldCategories:- Towers in Russia
- Buildings and structures completed in 1967
- Buildings and structures in Moscow
- Towers built in the Soviet Union
- Buildings and structures with revolving restaurants
- Former world's tallest buildings
- Visitor attractions in Moscow
- Communication towers
- Russian inventions
- Towers in Moscow
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