Ostankino Tower

Ostankino Tower
Останкинская телебашня
Ostankino Tower in May 2015
Location in Moscow
Record height
Tallest in the world from 1967 to 1975[I]
Preceded by	Empire State Building
Surpassed by	CN Tower
General information
Status	Complete
Type	Observation, telecommunications, tourism
Location	Moscow, Russia
Coordinates	55°49′11″N 37°36′42″E / 55.81972°N 37.61167°E / 55.81972; 37.61167Coordinates: 55°49′11″N 37°36′42″E / 55.81972°N 37.61167°E / 55.81972; 37.61167
Construction started	1963
Completed	1967
Owner	unitary enterprise Russian Television and Radio Broadcasting Network
Height
Antenna spire	540.1 m (1,772.0 ft)
Roof	385.4 m (1,264.4 ft)
Top floor	360.4 m (1,182.4 ft)
Technical details
Floor count	120 (equivalent)
Floor area	15,000 m2 (160,000 sq ft)
Lifts/elevators	11[1]
Design and construction
Structural engineer	Nikolai Nikitin
References
[2][3]

Ostankino Tower (Russian: Останкинская телебашня, Ostankinskaya telebashnya) is a television and radio tower in Moscow, Russia, owned by the Moscow branch of unitary enterprise Russian TV and Radio Broadcasting Network. Standing 540.1 metres (1,772 ft) tall, Ostankino was designed by Nikolai Nikitin. It is currently the tallest free-standing structure in Europe and 11th tallest in the world. The tower was the first free-standing structure to exceed 500 m (1,600 ft) in height. Ostankino was built to mark the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It is named after the Ostankino district of Moscow in which it is located.^[4][5]

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 eight years until it was overtaken by the CN Tower in 1975, which surpassed its height by 13 metres (43 ft).^[6] The Ostankino Tower remained the second-tallest free-standing structure in the world for another 32 years until the Burj Khalifa surpassed both it and the CN Tower in height in 2007. The Ostankino Tower has remained the tallest structure in Europe for over 50 years.

A 1994 plan to increase the tower's height to 561 metres (1,841 ft) by adding an antenna was not implemented for lack of funding.^[7]

Comparison of the Ostankino Tower with the world's seven tallest towers

Transmissions

TV stations

The tower as compared to high-rise apartments

Ostankino Tower at night

View from Ostankino Tower toward Moscow City

Station	Channel	Frequency	ERP
Channel One	1	MHz	40 kW
TV Tsentr	3	MHz	40 kW
Russia 2	6	MHz	1 kW
NTV	8	MHz	40 kW
Russia 1	11	MHz	60 kW
Che	23	MHz	10 kW
360* Podmoskove	25	MHz	10 kW
STS-Moscow	27	MHz	5
Disney Channel (Russia)	29	MHz	10 kW
Domashniy	31	MHz	20 kW
Russia K	33	MHz	20 kW
TNT	35	MHz	5 kW
Channel Five	44	MHz	5 kW
TV-3	46	MHz	10 kW
REN TV	49	MHz	20 kW
U	51	MHz	20 kW
Zvezda	57	MHz	5 kW
2×2	60	MHz	5 kW

MW stations

None

360° panorama from observation deck of the Ostankino TV tower

Accidents

The tower on fire on 27 August 2000

The tower caught fire on 27 August 2000, killing four people. Three firefighters died in the attempt to extinguish the fire, and one lift operator died when her elevator cabin crashed to the ground level due to the fire. 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.^[8] 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.^[9]

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) up stopped further spread.^[8] The fire knocked out virtually all television broadcasts in Moscow and the surrounding regions. The only television station unaffected was the private NTV station, but the government decreed that state channels took priority, and as such, the RTR TV channel began transmitting to several Moscow districts.^[10]

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. Efforts began immediately to rebuild the tower, which proved to be a long and expensive task.^[11][12]

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."^[13][14]

On 1 July 2004, Australian 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.^[15][16][17]

On 25 March 2005 the first new elevators since the August 2000 fire, made by the German company ThyssenKrupp, were tested and put into service. The new elevators travel at a speed of 6 metres per second (20 ft/s).

On 25 May 2007, the Ostankino 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.^[18]

In April 2009, the observation platform reopened.^[19] The Seventh Heaven restaurant reopened in November 2016.^[20]

On 21 July 2018 there was race up the Tower, which athletes from 12 countries took part in. They ran up the narrow, spiral staircase and reached the location at an altitude of 337.0 meters. The fastest of the 28 athletes was German Christian Riedl, who made it to the top in 9 minutes and 51 seconds. The women's winner was Cynthia Harris (USA), who reached the top in 12 minutes and 15 seconds. Absolute records were then broken into the categories of men and women. ^[21]

See also

• Ostankino Technical Center
• List of tallest buildings and structures in the world
• List of tallest structures in the former Soviet Union
• List of towers
• Fernsehturm Stuttgart – first TV tower built from concrete and prototype for many similar towers built later

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ostankino Tower.

Wikinews has related news: Ostankino Tower catches fire in Moscow

• Ostankino Television Tower
• A visit to the Ostankino Television Tower at redpenguin.net
• 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