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 structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting structures. Towers are specifi ...

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 River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Kyi ...

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 2010radio 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 transmi ...

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 of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum ( radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting beg ...

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 millio ...

, 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 fo ...

s and thicknesses, the structure weighs . The central pipe, or core, where the

elevator An elevator or lift is a cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or decks of a building, vessel, or other structure. They a ...

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 ra ...

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 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 is distinct from lower temperature techniques such as bra ...

. 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. ...

. 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 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 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 2021, disp ...

'', 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 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.

References

External links