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WATCH: Tokyo tower to be twice as tall as Burj Khalifa?

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An artist's rendition of the 'Sky Mile Tower'

An artist's rendition of the 'Sky Mile Tower'

The 'Sky Mile Tower' would have the capacity to host 55,000 people.

Published: Sat 13 Feb 2016, 2:41 PM

Updated: Thu 22 Sep 2022, 11:07 AM

  • By
  • Yousuf Saifuddin Kapadia (Web Journalist)

The island nation of Japan has ambitious plans to build a skyscraper two times taller than Dubai's Burj Khalifa, which is currently the tallest building in the world.

According to Architectural Digest reports, if plans for the tower are accepted, the 'Sky Mile Tower' would be 5,577ft tall and surrounded by a series of man-made hexagonal shaped islands.

Dubai's Burj Khalifa is 2,722ft tall.

The tower, situated in Tokyo bay, would have the capacity to host 55,000 people.

These islands aren't only designed to protect Tokyo from flooding and act as foundation for homes for around half a million people - but also allow ships easy access in and out of the busy harbor.

The proposed tower is part of an initiative by Japan, called "Next Tokyo," where architects 'would create a futuristic mega-city that is adapted to climate change in the year 2045.'

'Sky Mile Tower' is expected to be completed by 2045.

The tower and satellite islands, designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox and engineering firm Leslie E. Robertson, are planned to be partially powered by it transit system.

Sustainable design

Salt water from the bay would also be retained to grow algae, a source of renewable and clean fuel.

The tower will boast of amenities such as multilevel sky lobbies where residents would share amenities such as shopping centers, restaurants, hotels, gyms, libraries, and health clinics.

'The building's hexagonal design was conceived after a battery of wind tests proved the aerodynamics of the shape produced the most wind-resistant results.'

To deal with the common issue of pumping water up a mile in the sky, architects addressed the issue by designing a façade that could collect, treat, and store water at various levels in the tower, while relying on gravity for a natural distribution, Architectural Digest reported.

Recently, the must talked about Shanghai Tower was completed by architecture firm Gensler, which made it China's tallest and the world's second tallest building.

Located in Shanghai's burgeoning Lujiazui financial district, the 632-metre-high skyscraper comprises 121 storeys and is 31 metres taller than the previous title holder, the Makkah Royal Clock Tower in Makkah.

Shanghai Tower on the extreme right

Other Asian towers taking shape or planned

Dubai Creek Tower

Earlier in February, His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, had approved the plan for for a new observation tower to be built in the Dubai Creek area of the city.

The winning design, which provides a modern twist on Islamic architecture, was described by Shaikh Mohammed as an "architectural wonder that will be as great as Burj Khalifa and the Eiffel Tower", according to the state news agency Wam.

The height of the tower has not been specified but in drawings provided by Emaar it looms high over neighbouring towers.

Emaar said a name for the tower has not yet been chosen.

The Saudi government had announced in 2015 that it had secured funds to complete the Jeddah Tower, which will measure 3,280 feet when it's completed in 2018.

The Jeddah Tower, also known as the Kingdom Tower, will be the first building in the world to reach a full kilometer into the air. Expected to open by 2019, the tower will make the Burj Khalifa the second tallest building on Earth.

Construction of the Jeddah tower has already started.

Iraq's 'The Bride'

Before 2015 ended, another oil rich Gulf country announced plans to built the world's tallest tower - Iraq.

As the war-torn country tries to rebuild it's economy, if the plan for a brand-new tower known as "The Bride" is completed as proposed by AMBS Architects, it will be the new tallest building in the world.

Set to rise in Iraq's oil-rich Basra Province, the complex is actually made up of four conjoined towers, totaling 604 stories and 16.6 million square feet, Business Insider reported.

They combine to create what the architects are calling the world's first "vertical city."



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