The Space Needle is an observation tower in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

, Washington, United States. Considered to be an icon of the city, it has been designated a

Seattle landmark The City of Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board, part of the Department of Neighborhoods of the city of Seattle, Washington, United States, designates city landmarks. According to the department's official website, the following are designated ...

. Located in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, it was built in the Seattle Center for the

1962 World's Fair The Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair) was a world's fair held April 21, 1962, to October 21, 1962, in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States.tallest structure west of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it ...

, standing at . The tower is wide, weighs , and is built to withstand winds of up to and

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...

s of up to 9.0 magnitude, as strong as the 1700 Cascadia earthquake. The Space Needle features an observation deck above ground, providing views of the downtown Seattle skyline, the Olympic and Cascade Mountains,

Mount Rainier Mount Rainier (), indigenously known as Tahoma, Tacoma, Tacobet, or təqʷubəʔ, is a large active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest, located in Mount Rainier National Park about south-southeast of Seattle. With a ...

, Mount Baker,

Elliott Bay Elliott Bay is a part of the Central Basin region of Puget Sound. It is in the U.S. state of Washington, extending southeastward between West Point in the north and Alki Point in the south. Seattle was founded on this body of water in the 1850s ...

, and various islands in

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected m ...

. Visitors can reach the top of the Space Needle by elevators, which take 41 seconds. On April 19, 1999, the city's Landmarks Preservation Board designated the tower a historic landmark.

Architecture

The architecture of the Space Needle is the result of a compromise between the designs of two people, Edward E. Carlson and John Graham, Jr. The two leading ideas for the World Fair involved businessman Edward E. Carlson's sketch (on a napkin) of a giant

balloon A balloon is a flexible bag that can be inflated with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, and air. For special tasks, balloons can be filled with smoke, liquid water, granular media (e.g. sand, flour or rice), or li ...

tethered to the ground (the gently sloping base) and architect John Graham's concept of a flying saucer (the halo that houses the restaurant and observation deck). Victor Steinbrueck introduced the hourglass profile of the tower. The Space Needle was built to withstand wind speeds of , double the requirements in the building code of 1962. The 6.8 Nisqually earthquake jolted the Needle enough in 2001 for water to slosh out of the toilets in the restrooms. The Space Needle will not sustain serious structural damage during earthquakes of magnitudes below 9.1. Also made to withstand Category 5 hurricane-force winds, the Space Needle sways only per of wind speed. For decades, the hovering disk of the Space Needle was home to two restaurants above the ground: the Space Needle Restaurant, which was originally named Eye of the Needle, and Emerald Suite. These were closed in 2000 to make way for SkyCity, a larger restaurant that features Pacific Northwest cuisine. In 1993, the elevators were replaced with new computerized versions. The new elevators descend at a rate of . On December 31, 1999, a powerful beam of light was unveiled for the first time. Called the Legacy Light or Skybeam, it is powered by lamps that total 85 million

candela The candela ( or ; symbol: cd) is the unit of luminous intensity in the International System of Units (SI). It measures luminous power per unit solid angle emitted by a light source in a particular direction. Luminous intensity is analogous t ...

shining skyward from the top of the Space Needle to honor national holidays and special occasions in Seattle. The concept of this beam was derived from the official 1962 World's Fair poster, which depicted such a light source although none was incorporated into the original design. It is somewhat controversial because of the light pollution it creates. Originally planned to be turned on 75 nights per year, it has generally been used fewer than a dozen times per year. It did remain lit for eleven days in a row from September 11, 2001, to September 22, 2001, in response to the September 11, 2001, attacks. A 1962 Seattle World's Fair poster showed a grand spiral entryway leading to 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 ar ...

that was ultimately omitted from final building plans. The main stairwell has 848 steps from the basement to the top of the observation deck. At approximately , the Space Needle was the tallest building west of the

at the time it was built by

Howard S. Wright The Howard S. Wright Companies provide pre-construction services, construction, construction management, and design-build services for a wide range of project types and industries, primarily within the ten western states of the United States. In 2 ...

Construction Co., but is now dwarfed by other structures along the Seattle skyline, among them the Columbia Center, at . Unlike many other similar structures, such as the CN Tower in Toronto, the Space Needle is not used for broadcasting purposes.

History

Construction

Edward E. Carlson, chairman of the 1962 World's Fair in Seattle, had an idea for erecting a tower with a restaurant at the World's Fair. Carlson was president of a hotel company and was not recognized in art or design, but he was inspired by a recent visit to the Stuttgart Tower of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

. Local architect John Graham soon became involved as a result of his success in designing Northgate Mall. Graham's first move was to alter the restaurant's original design to a

revolving restaurant A revolving restaurant or rotating restaurant is usually a tower restaurant eating space designed to rest atop a broad circular revolving platform that operates as a large turntable. The building remains stationary and the diners are carried on ...

, similar to his previous design of the La Ronde tower restaurant at the

Ala Moana Shopping Center The Ala Moana Center, commonly known simply as Ala Moana, is a large open-air shopping mall in the Ala Moana neighborhood of Honolulu, Hawaii. Owned by Brookfield Properties, Ala Moana is the eleventh largest shopping mall in the United States an ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only ...

. The proposed Space Needle had no pre-selected site. Since it was not financed by the city, land had to be purchased within the fairgrounds. The investors had been unable to find suitable land and the search for a site was nearly dead when, in 1961, they discovered a lot, , containing switching equipment for the fire and police alarm systems. The land, which originally had the neighborhood's fire station until 1921, was sold by the city for $75,000. At this point, only one year remained before the World's Fair would begin. The Needle was privately financed and built by the Pentagram Corporation, consisting of Bagley Wright, contractor

, architect John Graham, Ned Skinner, and Norton Clapp. In 1977 Bagley, Skinner and Clapp sold their interest to Howard Wright who now controls it under the name of Space Needle Corporation. The earthquake stability of the Space Needle was ensured when a hole was dug deep and across, and 467 concrete trucks took one full day to fill it. The foundation weighs (including of reinforcing steel), the same as the above-ground structure. The structure is bolted to the foundation with 72 bolts, each one long. With time an issue, the construction team worked around the clock. The domed top, housing the top five levels (including the restaurants and observation deck), was perfectly balanced so that the restaurant could rotate with the help of one tiny electric motor, originally , later replaced with a motor. With paint colors named Orbital Olive for the body, Astronaut White for the legs, Re-entry Red for the saucer, and Galaxy Gold for the roof, the Space Needle was finished in less than one year. It was completed in April 1962 at a cost of $4.5 million. The last elevator car was installed the day before the Fair opened on April 21. During the course of the Fair nearly 20,000 people a day rode the elevators to the Observation Deck. Upon completion, the Space Needle was the tallest building in the western United States, replacing the

Smith Tower Smith Tower is a skyscraper in the Pioneer Square neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. Completed in 1914, the 38-story, tower is the oldest skyscraper in the city and was among the tallest skyscrapers outside New York City at th ...

in downtown Seattle as the tallest building west of the Mississippi since 1914. Space Needle at World's Fair, 1962

The revolving restaurant was operated by

Western International Hotels Westin Hotels & Resorts is an American upscale hotel chain owned by Marriott International. , the Westin Brand has 226 properties with 82,608 rooms in multiple countries in addition to 58 hotels with 15,741 rooms in the pipeline. History Wester ...

, of which Carlson was President, under a 20-year contract from April 1, 1962, to April 1, 1982.

Carillon

An imitation carillon (using recordings of

bell A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inte ...

s, rather than live bells) was installed in the Space Needle, and played several times a day during the World's Fair. The instrument, built by the Schulmerich Bells Company of Hatfield, Pennsylvania under the name "Carillon Americana", recreated the sounds of 538 bells and was the largest in the world, until eclipsed by a 732 bell instrument at the 1964 New York World's Fair. The operator's console was located in the base of the Space Needle, completely enclosed in glass to allow observation of the musician playing the instrument. It was also capable of being played from a roll, like a player piano. The forty-four stentors (speakers) of the carillon were located underneath the Needle's disc at the level, and were audible over the entire fairgrounds and up to away. The carillon was disassembled after the fair's close. The Carillon Americana was featured on a 12-track

LP record The LP (from "long playing" or "long play") is an analog sound storage medium, a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specification; and ...

called "Bells On High-Fi" (catalog number AR-8, produced by Americana Records, of Sellersville, Pennsylvania). These studio recordings were performed by noted carillonneur John Klein (1915-1981).

After the Fair

Aerial Space Needle Painted Gold May 2012

A radio broadcast studio was built on the observation level of the Space Needle in 1963. It was used for morning broadcasts by Radio KING and its sister TV station

KING-TV KING-TV (channel 5) is a television station in Seattle, Washington, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside Everett-licensed independent station KONG (channel 16). Both stations share studios at the Home Pl ...

from July 1963 to May 1966, and

KIRO Radio Kiro was a colonial post in what is now the Central Equatoria province of South Sudan on the west side of the Bahr al Jebel or White Nile river. It was in part of the Lado enclave. In 1900 there were said to be 1,500 troops from the Congo Free S ...

from 1966 to 1974. Disc jockey Bobby Wooten of country music station KAYO-AM lived in an apartment built adjacent to the Space Needle's broadcast studio for six months in 1974, which required a permit variance from the city government. On March 27, 1964, the restaurant atop the Space Needle stopped rotating as a result of the 9.2 earthquake in Alaska. In 1974, author Stephen Cosgrove's children's book ''Wheedle on the Needle'' imagined a furry creature called the

Wheedle The Wheedle is the title character of a popular children's book by author Stephen Cosgrove. The character eventually evolved into a popular mascot generally associated with the city of Seattle. Children's book character Original story ''W ...

who lived on top of the Space Needle and caused its light to flash. Its closing quatrain is: ''There's a Wheedle on the Needle / I know just what you're thinking / But if you look up late at night / You'll see his red nose blinking.'' The Wheedle has since become a fixture of Seattle. It became the mascot of the Seattle SuperSonics

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues i ...

(NBA) franchise, who played in nearby KeyArena (now Climate Pledge Arena). The SuperSonics moved to

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, an ...

on July 3, 2008. In 1982, the SkyLine level was added at the height of . While this level had been part of the original plans for the Space Needle, it was not built until this time. Today, the SkyLine Banquet Facility can accommodate groups of 20–360 people. Renovations were completed in 2000 at a cost ($21 million) approximately the same in inflated dollars as the original construction price. Renovations between 1999 and 2000 included the SkyCity restaurant, SpaceBase retail store, Skybeam installation, Observation Deck overhaul, lighting additions and repainting. On New Year's Eve, the Space Needle hosts a fireworks show at midnight;

Alberto Navarro Alberto "Beto" Navarro (born March 25, 1989) is an American soccer player. He currently serves on the coaching staff for California United Strikers FC in the National Independent Soccer Association. Career In 2012, Navarro was a part of Cal FC' ...

, a fireworks artist from Bellevue, is the lead architect of the show, which is viewed by thousands from the Seattle Center grounds, and televised by

. In 2000, public celebrations were canceled because of perceived terror threats against the structure after investigations into the foiled millennium bombing plots, but the fireworks show was still held. The 2020 fireworks display was canceled and replaced by a light show due to high winds, while the 2021 display was canceled and replaced by a broadcast-only

augmented reality Augmented reality (AR) is an interactive experience that combines the real world and computer-generated content. The content can span multiple sensory Modality (human–computer interaction), modalities, including visual, Hearing, auditory, hap ...

show due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. The fireworks display returned for 2022, but the Seattle Center grounds were closed to the public due to state proof of vaccination rules, and the television broadcast included augmented reality effects. In 2002, a real estate consultant in Bellevue proposed the construction of five smaller replicas of the Space Needle around the city to promote tourism, though official plans to build the proposed structures have not yet materialized. On May 19, 2007, the Space Needle welcomed its 45 millionth visitor, Greg Novoa from California, who received a free trip for two to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

. In May 2008, the Space Needle received its first professional deep cleaning since the opening of the 1962 World's Fair. The monument was pressure washed by Kärcher with water at a

pressure Pressure (symbol: ''p'' or ''P'') is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. Gauge pressure (also spelled ''gage'' pressure)The preferred spelling varies by country a ...

of almost and a temperature of approximately . The cleaning was only done at night so that the Space Needle could stay open to the public. No detergents were used in consideration of the Seattle Center and the nearby Experience Music Project. As part of the celebration of its 50th anniversary in April 2012, the Needle was painted "Galaxy Gold", which is more of an orangish color in practice. This is the same color used when the needle was originally constructed for the 1962 World's Fair. This temporary makeover, intended to last through the summer, is not the Needle's first: it had the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seat ...

(UW) Huskies football team logo painted after the team won the

1992 Rose Bowl The 1992 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 1992, the 78th Rose Bowl Game. Before 103,566 in attendance in Pasadena, California, and a national television audience, the #2 Washington Huskies defeated the #4 Michigan Wol ...

. When the game show '' Wheel of Fortune'' taped episodes in Seattle in 1995, it was painted to resemble the titular wheel as part of an intro sequence with Vanna White, It was painted crimson after Washington State won the Apple Cup, was painted red, white, and blue for Memorial Day in 2003, and has been seen with the Seattle SuperSonics and

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

colors and logos. Scaffold on Space Needle during 2017 renovation 06

A renovation of the top of the Space Needle began in the summer of 2017, to add an all-glass floor to the restaurant, and replace the observation platform windows with floor-to-ceiling glass panels to more closely match the 1962 original concept sketches, as well as upgrades and updates to the internal systems. Called the Century Project, the work was scheduled to finish by June 2018, at a cost of $100 million in private funds provided by the Wright family, who own the Space Needle. The designer is Olson Kundig Architects and the general contractor is Hoffman Construction Company. The rotating restaurant's motor was replaced, the elevator capacity was increased by adding elevators, or double-stacking them, and the energy efficiency of the building was improved with the aim of achieving LEED Gold Certification. The temporary scaffold's , platform under the top structure was assembled on the ground, and then lifted by cables from the ground to the underside of the structure, controlled by 12 operators standing on the platform as it was raised. The platform was made by

Safway Services BrandSafway is a construction and civil engineering company in the United States. BrandSafway has customers in 30 countries and has annual sales of 5 billion per year. The company provides Safety equipment to businesses around the world. They hav ...

, a company specializing in unique construction scaffolding. One-sixth of the observation deck was closed at a time, so that the Space Needle was never completely shut down to the public. The space reopened in August 2018 as the Loupe, an indoor observation deck with a revolving glass floor. It takes 45 minutes for the observation deck to do a full rotation. Two sets of stairs called the Oculus Stairs were added to connect the two new additional levels. They were named after the glass oculus at the base of the stairs where the Space Needle elevators can be seen ascending and descending. A café, wine bar, more restrooms, and an additional accessibility elevator to the top observation deck were also added.

Jumping incidents

Six parachutists have leaped from the tower since its opening, in a sport known as BASE jumping. This activity is legal only with prior authorization. Four of them were part of an authorized promotion in 1996, and one of the jumpers got injured and broke a bone in her back while attempting the stunt. The other two jumped illegally and were arrested. Paul D. Baker was the first person to jump from the Space Needle, committing suicide on March 4, 1974. Mary Lucille Wolf also jumped from the tower that year, on May 25. Following the two 1974 suicides, netting beneath and improved fencing around the observation deck were installed. In spite of the barrier additions, however, another suicide by Dixie Reeder occurred on July 5, 1978.

Appearances in TV and film

As a symbol of the Pacific Northwest, the Space Needle has made numerous appearances in films, TV shows, and other works of fiction. The Space Needle is often used in establishing shots as an economical means to tell the audience the setting is Seattle. Examples include the TV shows '' Frasier'', ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into ...

'', '' Dark Angel'', '' Bill Nye the Science Guy'', and films '' It Happened at the World's Fair'' (1962) and '' The Parallax View'' (1974) where it was used as a filming location, and '' Sleepless in Seattle'' (1993), '' Chronicle'' (2012). In the 1999 film '' Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'' made an absurdist visual gag conflating another icon of Seattle,

Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain. As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 ...

, with the tower, showing the coffee chains's name written across the Space Needle's saucer placing the villain

Doctor Evil Douglas Powers, commonly known as Dr. Evil, is a fictional character portrayed by Mike Myers in the ''Austin Powers'' film series. He is the main antagonist and Austin Powers' nemesis (and secret twin brother). He is a parody of James Bond villa ...

's base of operations there after his henchman Number 2 shifted the organization's resources toward the coffee company. As a visual symbol of Seattle, the Space Needle has been incorporated into the logos of NBA, WNBA, MLS, and

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

professional sports teams. The Space Needle has been involved in

practical joke A practical joke, or prank, is a mischievous trick played on someone, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. ...

s, especially those on

April Fools' Day April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day is an annual custom on 1 April consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fools!" at the recipient. Mass media can be involved in these pranks, which may b ...

. In 1989,

's '' Almost Live!'' reported that the Space Needle had collapsed, causing panicked people to call emergency services and forcing the station to apologize afterwards; the incident was compared to the 1938 radio broadcast of ''

The War of the Worlds ''The War of the Worlds'' is a science fiction novel by English author H. G. Wells, first serialised in 1897 by ''Pearson's Magazine'' in the UK and by '' Cosmopolitan'' magazine in the US. The novel's first appearance in hardcover was i ...

'', which caused panic among some listeners. In 2015, public radio station '' KPLU 88.5 FM'' reported in the news story "Proposed Development To 'Assimilate' Seattle's Landmark Space Needle?" that a permit application ''(Notice of Proposed Land Use Action)'' had been submitted "to construct a 666 unit cube to assimilate" the landmark. Other TV appearances include

The History Channel History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Dis ...

's '' Life After People'', in which the tower collapses after 200 years because of

corrosion Corrosion is a natural process that converts a refined metal into a more chemically stable oxide. It is the gradual deterioration of materials (usually a metal) by chemical or electrochemical reaction with their environment. Corrosion engi ...

. The tower was also destroyed in the TV miniseries '' 10.5'' when a 7.9 earthquake hits Seattle. The miniseries mistakenly portrays the Needle as crumbling concrete, though the structure is actually made of steel and designed to withstand up to a 9.0 earthquake.

Gallery

File:SpaceNeedleTopClose.jpg, Observation and restaurant floors in 2007 File:Seattlecenterspaceneedle.jpg, View from the base of the Needle File:SpaceNeedle GiftShop.PNG, Lower level gift shop File:Seattlenighttimequeenanne.jpg, Nighttime illumination File:Aerial_Downtown_Seattle_November_2011.jpg, Location relative to downtown Seattle File:Seattle from Space Needle.jpg, View of downtown from the observation deck File:Space Needle seen from Wenatchee Ferry on Puget Sound.jpg, Space Needle seen from Wenatchee Ferry on Puget Sound File:Movie at the Mural, Underneath the Space Needle.jpg, Movie at the Mural underneath the Space Needle

References

External links

*
Century 21 Exposition design plans for the 1962 Seattle World's Fair
– Architecture of the Pacific Northwest Database from the University of Washington
Entry at site of Howard S. Wright Construction Co.
* Video of scaffold platform lifted 500 feet at night: {{Authority control Towers completed in 1961 Googie architecture Buildings and structures in Seattle Towers with revolving restaurants Landmarks in Seattle Seattle Center Observation towers in the United States Towers in Washington (state) Tourist attractions in Seattle World's fair architecture in Seattle Century 21 Exposition Symbols of Washington (state) 1961 establishments in Washington (state)