Atomium

A building shaped like an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times, built for Expo 58.

The shape is a model of the smallest repeating unit of an iron crystal, magnified 165 billion times. Tubes that join the spheres hold stairs, escalators and a lift, and six of the spheres can be visited. They hold exhibition halls and public spaces, and the top sphere has a restaurant with a view over Brussels.

Why an atom?

The Atomium was designed by the engineer André Waterkeyn and the architects André and Jean Polak, as a tribute to scientific progress and to show off Belgian engineering skills. In the 1950s, faith in science was strong, and the subject was chosen to show the excitement of the Atomic Age.

The name combines the words "atom" and "aluminium", the metal that originally covered the spheres. It stands on the Heysel plateau in the Laeken district of Brussels, where Expo 58 took place.

Building a giant model

The first project was presented in January 1955, and work on the foundations began in March 1956. The building was finished less than a month before Expo 58 opened on 17 April 1958.

Wind-tunnel tests showed that the first design, with three outer spheres hanging without support, would have toppled over in an 80 km/h wind, so support columns were added. The central tube held the fastest lift in Europe at the time, taking 22 people to the top in 23 seconds.

Still a favourite

The Atomium was designed to last only six months, but it became so popular that taking it down was put off year after year until the city decided to keep it. For thirty years it got little maintenance.

Between 2004 and 2006 it was renovated, and the old faded aluminium sheets were replaced with stainless steel. In 1960 the Tour de France cycling race passed in front of it.

On the globe

The model shows nine shiny spheres joined in a cube shape.