Tokyo Tower
Encyclopedia
is a communications
and observation tower
located in Shiba Park
, Minato, Tokyo
, Japan
. At 332.5 metres (1,091 ft), it is the second tallest artificial structure in Japan. The structure is an Eiffel Tower
-inspired lattice tower
that is painted white and international orange
to comply with air safety
regulations.
Built in 1958, the tower's main sources of revenue are tourism and antenna leasing. Over 150 million people have visited the tower since its opening. FootTown, a 4-storey building located directly under the tower, houses museums, restaurants and shops. Departing from here, guests can visit two observation decks. The 2-storey Main Observatory is located at 150 metres (492.1 ft), while the smaller Special Observatory reaches a height of 250 metres (820.2 ft).
The tower acts as a support structure for an antenna. Originally intended for television broadcasting, radio antennas were installed in 1961 and the tower is now used to broadcast signals for Japanese media outlets such as NHK
, TBS
and Fuji TV. Japan's planned digital television transition
by July 2011 is problematic, however. Tokyo Tower's current height is not high enough to adequately support complete terrestrial digital broadcasting
to the area. A taller digital broadcasting tower, known as Tokyo Sky Tree, is currently planned to open in 2012.
after NHK
, Japan's public broadcasting station, began television broadcasting in 1953. Private broadcasting companies began operating in the months following the construction of NHK's own transmission tower. This communications boom led the Japanese government to believe that transmission towers would soon be built all over Tokyo, eventually overrunning the city. The proposed solution was the construction of one large tower capable of transmitting to the entire region. Furthermore, because of the country's postwar boom
in the 1950s, Japan was searching for a monument to symbolize its ascendancy as a global economic powerhouse.
Hisakichi Maeda, founder and president of Nippon Denpatō, the tower's owner and operator, originally planned for the tower to be taller than the Empire State Building
, which at 381 meters was the highest structure in the world. However, the plan fell through because of the lack of both funds and materials. The tower's height was eventually determined by the distance the TV stations needed to transmit throughout the Kantō region, a distance of about 150 kilometres (93.2 mi). Tachū Naitō
, renowned designer of tall buildings in Japan, was chosen to design the newly proposed tower. Looking to the Western world
for inspiration, Naitō based his design on the Eiffel Tower
in Paris
, France
. With the help of engineering company Nikken Sekkei Ltd., Naitō claimed his design could withstand earthquakes with twice the intensity of the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake
or typhoons with wind speeds of up to 220 kilometres per hour (136.7 mph).
The new construction project attracted hundreds of tobi, traditional Japanese construction workers who specialized in the construction of high-rise structures. The Takenaka Corporation
broke ground in June 1957 and each day at least 400 laborers worked on the tower. It was constructed of steel
, a third of which was scrap metal taken from US tanks damaged in the Korean War
. When the 90-metre antenna was bolted into place on October 14, 1958, Tokyo Tower was the tallest freestanding tower in the world, taking the title from the Eiffel Tower by 13 metres. Despite being taller than the Eiffel Tower, Tokyo Tower only weighs about 4,000 tons, 3,300 tons less than the Eiffel Tower. While other towers have since surpassed Tokyo Tower's height, the structure is still the tallest self-supporting steel structure in the world and was the tallest artificial structure in Japan until April 2010, when the new Tokyo Sky Tree became the tallest building of Japan. It was opened to the public on December 23, 1958 at a final cost of ¥
2.8 billion ($8.4 million in 1958). Tokyo Tower was mortgaged
for ¥10 billion in 2000.
Tokyo Tower's two main revenue sources are antenna leasing and tourism. It functions as a radio and television broadcasting antenna support structure and is a tourist destination that houses several different attractions. Over 150 million people have visited the tower in total since its opening in late 1958. Tower attendance had been steadily declining until it bottomed out at 2.3 million in 2000. Since then, attendance has been rising, and it has recently been attracting approximately 3 million visitors per year. The first area tourists must visit upon reaching the tower is FootTown, a 4-story building stationed directly under the tower. Here, visitors can eat, shop and visit several museums and galleries. Elevators that depart from the first floor of FootTown can be used to reach the first of two observations decks, the 2-story Main Observatory. For the price of another ticket, visitors can board another set of elevators that from the second floor of the Main Observatory to reach the final observation deck—the Special Observatory.
, digital television
, radio
and digital radio
. Stations that use the tower's antenna include:
Japan currently employs both analog and digital broadcasting, but by July 2011 all television broadcasting is to be digital. Tokyo Tower is not a reliable broadcasting antenna for completely digital broadcasting because the tower is not tall enough to transmit the higher frequency waves needed to areas surrounded by forests or high-rise buildings. As an alternative, a new 634-metre-tall (2,080 ft) tower called the Tokyo Sky Tree is planned to open in 2012. To make Tokyo Tower more appealing to NHK
and five other commercial broadcasters who plan to move their transmitting stations to the new tower, Nihon Denpatō officials have drafted a plan to extend its digital broadcasting antenna by 80 to 100 metres. To increase the height of the tower's antenna by 100 metres, the structure itself will have to be lengthened by 20 metres, which would cost approximately ¥4 billion. In addition to covering this cost, the company would put ¥3.5 billion into refurbishing the transmitting station, offering four times more area to each broadcaster. Current Tokyo aviation restrictions limit Tokyo Tower's height, but current Nihon Denpatō President Shin Maeda has stated that the company plans to discuss the matter with related ministries and agencies. If these plans are not realized, however, Tokyo Tower is expected to stop transmitting digital TV radio waves with the exception of Open University of Japan
, who will continue to broadcast through the tower. FM radio stations will also continue to utilize the tower for broadcasting in the Tokyo area. Masahiro Kawada, the tower's planning director, also pointed out the possibility of the tower becoming a backup for the Tokyo Sky Tree, depending on what the TV broadcasters want or need. The tip of the antenna was damaged on March 11, 2011 as a result of the Tōhoku earthquake
.
convenience store and a souvenir shop. This floor's main attractions, however, are the three elevators that serve as a direct ride to the Main Observatory. The second floor is primarily a food and shopping area. In addition to the five standalone restaurants, the second floor's food court
consists of four restaurants, including a McDonald's
and a Pizza-La
.
FootTown's third and fourth floors house several tourist attractions. The third floor is home to the Guinness World Records Museum Tokyo, a museum that houses life-size figures, photo panels and memorabilia depicting interesting records that have been authenticated by the Guinness Book. The Tokyo Tower Wax Museum, opened in 1970, displays wax figures imported from London where they were made. The figures on display range from pop culture icons such as The Beatles
to historical figures such as Jesus Christ. A hologram gallery named the Gallery DeLux, a lounge and a few specialty stores are also located on this floor. Tokyo Tower's Trick Art Gallery is located on the building's forth and final floor. This gallery displays optical illusion
s, including paintings and objects that visitors can interact with.
On the roof of the FootTown building is a small amusement park that contains several small rides and hosts live performances for children. On weekends and holidays, visitors can use the roof to access the tower's outside stairwell. At approximately 660 steps, the stairwell is an alternative to the tower's elevators and leads directly to the Main Observatory.
Tokyo Tower has two observation decks—the Main Observatory and the Special Observatory; both offer a 360 degree view of Tokyo and, on clear days, Mount Fuji
can be seen to the south. The two-floor Main Observatory, located at 145 m, provides visitors with a view of Tokyo and houses several attractions. The first floor is home to a small café and Club 333, a small stage that is used to put on live music shows. Also located on this floor are two "look down windows" that allow visitors to stand over a small clear window and look to the ground 145 m below. The second floor (at 150 m) houses a small souvenir shop and a Shinto
shrine, the highest shrine in the special wards of Tokyo
. The elevators leading to the Special Observatory are also located on this floor. Departing on these elevators, visitors can reach the Special Observatory. a small, circular, completely enclosed observatory located at 250 m.
, complying with air safety
regulations. Every five years the tower undergoes a year-long makeover in which it is completely repainted. Before the tower's 30th anniversary in 1987, the only lighting on the tower were light bulbs located on the corner contours that extended from the base to the antenna. In the spring of 1987, Nihon Denpatō invited lighting designer
Motoko Ishii
to visit the tower. Since its opening 30 years earlier, the tower's annual ticket sales had dropped significantly, and in a bid to revitalize the tower and again establish it as an important tourist attraction and symbol of Tokyo, Ishii was hired to redesign Tokyo Tower's lighting arrangement.
Unveiled in 1989, the new lighting arrangement required the removal of the contour-outlining light bulbs and the installation of 176 floodlights in and around the tower's frame. From dusk to midnight, the floodlights illuminate the entire tower. Sodium vapor lamp
s are used from October 2 to July 6 to cover the tower in an orange color. From July 7 to October 1, the lights are changed to metal halide lamp
s to illuminate the tower with a white color. The reasoning behind the change is a seasonal one. Ishii reasoned that orange is a warmer color and helps to offset the cold winter months. Conversely, white is thought a cool color that helps during the hot summer months.
Occasionally, Tokyo Tower's lighting is changed to specific, unique arrangements for special events. The tower is specially lit for some annual events.
Since 2000, the entire tower has been illuminated in a pink light on October 1 to highlight the beginning of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
. The tower has also had a variety of special lighting arrangements for Christmas
since 1994. Special Japanese events have also been cause to light the tower in several nontraditional ways. In 2002, alternating sections of the tower were lit blue to help celebrate the opening of the FIFA World Cup
in Japan. Alternating sections of the tower were lit green on Saint Patrick's Day
in 2007 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Japanese-Irish relations. On a few occasions, Tokyo Tower has even been specially lit to correspond with corporate events. For example, the top half of the tower was lit green to correspond with the Japanese premiere of The Matrix Reloaded
and different sections of the tower were lit red, white and black to commemorate the first day of sales of Coca-Cola C2
. The tower was also uniquely lit for the new millennium in 2000 with Motoko Ishii again reprising her role as the designer. In December 2008, Nihon Denpatō spent $6.5 million to create a new nighttime illumination scheme—titled the "Diamond Veil"—to celebrate the tower's 50th anniversary. The arrangement featured 276 lights in seven colors equally distributed across the towers four faces.
When employing specialty lighting on the tower, the Main Observatory often plays an important role. During the second international "White Band Day" on September 10, 2005, the tower was completely unlit except for the Main Observatory, which was lit with a bright white light. The resulting white ring represented the White Band referenced in the day's name. The two floors of windows that make up the exterior of the Main Observatory are utilized to display words or numbers. When the tower employed unique lighting to commemorate terrestrial digital broadcasting
first being available in the Kantō region
on December 1, 2005, each side of the Main Observatory displayed the characters —an abbreviation for . More recently, the observatory displayed both "TOKYO" and "2016" to stress Tokyo's 2016 Olympic bid
. Primitive images, such as hearts, have also been displayed using the observatory's windows.
is often used in popular culture to immediately locate a scene in Paris, France, Tokyo Tower is often used in the same way for Tokyo. It is used in anime
and manga
such as Magic Knight Rayearth
, Please Save My Earth
, Cardcaptor Sakura
, Digimon
and Sailor Moon
. The tower is also frequently used in the Japanese kaiju
(giant monster) film genre. It has been the location of the climactic battles between Godzilla
, Mothra
and King Kong
(King Kong Escapes
) wherein it is frequently destroyed and rebuilt. Based on the popular manga series by Ryōhei Saigan, the 2005 film Always Sanchōme no Yūhi
was a nostalgic view of life in the neighbourhoods under the construction of the Tokyo Tower. The Tokyo Tower also makes appearances in Tokyo Mater
, a Pixar
short film, and in the "Samurai Blue" level of Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii: Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2
, a rhythm game for the Nintendo DS
. The Tokyo Tower has 2 mascots named Noppon. There are two brothers, Older Brother who wears blue dungarees and Younger Brother who wears red dungarees. They were 'born' on December 23, 1998 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Tokyo Tower.
Radio masts and towers
Radio masts and towers are, typically, tall structures designed to support antennas for telecommunications and broadcasting, including television. They are among the tallest man-made structures...
and observation tower
Observation tower
An observation tower is a structure used to view events from a long distance and to create a full 360 degree range of vision. They are usually at least tall and made from stone, iron, and wood. Many modern towers are also used as TV towers, restaurants, or churches...
located in Shiba Park
Shiba Park
is a public park in Minato, Tokyo, Japan built around the temple of Zōjō-ji.The park is located between the Minato municipal offices and Tokyo Tower...
, Minato, Tokyo
Minato, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. As of 1 March 2008, it had an official population of 217,335 and a population density of 10,865 persons per km². The total area is 20.34 km².Minato hosts 49 embassies...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. At 332.5 metres (1,091 ft), it is the second tallest artificial structure in Japan. The structure is an Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
-inspired lattice tower
Lattice tower
A lattice tower or truss tower is a freestanding framework tower. They can be used as electricity pylons especially for voltages above 100 kilovolts, as a radio tower or as an observation tower....
that is painted white and international orange
International orange
International orange is a color used in the aerospace industry to set things apart from their surroundings, similar to safety orange, but deeper and with a more reddish tone.-International orange :...
to comply with air safety
Air safety
Air safety is a term encompassing the theory, investigation and categorization of flight failures, and the prevention of such failures through regulation, education and training. It can also be applied in the context of campaigns that inform the public as to the safety of air travel.-United...
regulations.
Built in 1958, the tower's main sources of revenue are tourism and antenna leasing. Over 150 million people have visited the tower since its opening. FootTown, a 4-storey building located directly under the tower, houses museums, restaurants and shops. Departing from here, guests can visit two observation decks. The 2-storey Main Observatory is located at 150 metres (492.1 ft), while the smaller Special Observatory reaches a height of 250 metres (820.2 ft).
The tower acts as a support structure for an antenna. Originally intended for television broadcasting, radio antennas were installed in 1961 and the tower is now used to broadcast signals for Japanese media outlets such as NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
, TBS
Tokyo Broadcasting System
, TBS Holdings, Inc. or TBSHD, is a stockholding company in Tokyo, Japan. It is a parent company of a television network named and radio network named ....
and Fuji TV. Japan's planned digital television transition
Digital television transition
The digital television transition is the process in which analog television broadcasting is converted to and replaced by digital television. This primarily involves both TV stations and over-the-air viewers; however it also involves content providers like TV networks, and cable television...
by July 2011 is problematic, however. Tokyo Tower's current height is not high enough to adequately support complete terrestrial digital broadcasting
Digital terrestrial television
Digital terrestrial television is the technological evolution of broadcast television and advance from analog television, which broadcasts land-based signals...
to the area. A taller digital broadcasting tower, known as Tokyo Sky Tree, is currently planned to open in 2012.
Construction
A large broadcasting tower was needed in the Kantō regionKanto region
The is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa. Within its boundaries, slightly more than 40 percent of the land area is the Kantō Plain....
after NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
, Japan's public broadcasting station, began television broadcasting in 1953. Private broadcasting companies began operating in the months following the construction of NHK's own transmission tower. This communications boom led the Japanese government to believe that transmission towers would soon be built all over Tokyo, eventually overrunning the city. The proposed solution was the construction of one large tower capable of transmitting to the entire region. Furthermore, because of the country's postwar boom
Japanese post-war economic miracle
The Japanese post-war economic miracle is the name given to the historical phenomenon of Japan's record period of economic growth following World War II, spurred mainly by Japanese economic policy, in particular through the Ministry of International Trade and Industry...
in the 1950s, Japan was searching for a monument to symbolize its ascendancy as a global economic powerhouse.
Empire State Building
The Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet , and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft high. Its name is derived...
, which at 381 meters was the highest structure in the world. However, the plan fell through because of the lack of both funds and materials. The tower's height was eventually determined by the distance the TV stations needed to transmit throughout the Kantō region, a distance of about 150 kilometres (93.2 mi). Tachū Naitō
Tachu Naito
was a Japanese architect, engineer, and professor from Yamanashi Prefecture, Minami-Alps, Yamanashi. He was a father of earthquake-proof design and built many broadcasting and observation towers, including the Tokyo Tower.- Biography :...
, renowned designer of tall buildings in Japan, was chosen to design the newly proposed tower. Looking to the Western world
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
for inspiration, Naitō based his design on the Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. With the help of engineering company Nikken Sekkei Ltd., Naitō claimed his design could withstand earthquakes with twice the intensity of the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake
1923 Great Kanto earthquake
The struck the Kantō plain on the Japanese main island of Honshū at 11:58:44 am JST on September 1, 1923. Varied accounts hold that the duration of the earthquake was between 4 and 10 minutes...
or typhoons with wind speeds of up to 220 kilometres per hour (136.7 mph).
The new construction project attracted hundreds of tobi, traditional Japanese construction workers who specialized in the construction of high-rise structures. The Takenaka Corporation
Takenaka Corporation
is the biggest architecture, engineering, and construction firm in Japan. Its headquarters is in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Osaka Prefecture.The company's website also claims it to be the oldest firm of that type anywhere in the world, since the demise of Kongō Gumi which was substantially older...
broke ground in June 1957 and each day at least 400 laborers worked on the tower. It was constructed of steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
, a third of which was scrap metal taken from US tanks damaged in the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
. When the 90-metre antenna was bolted into place on October 14, 1958, Tokyo Tower was the tallest freestanding tower in the world, taking the title from the Eiffel Tower by 13 metres. Despite being taller than the Eiffel Tower, Tokyo Tower only weighs about 4,000 tons, 3,300 tons less than the Eiffel Tower. While other towers have since surpassed Tokyo Tower's height, the structure is still the tallest self-supporting steel structure in the world and was the tallest artificial structure in Japan until April 2010, when the new Tokyo Sky Tree became the tallest building of Japan. It was opened to the public on December 23, 1958 at a final cost of ¥
Japanese yen
The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro and the pound sterling...
2.8 billion ($8.4 million in 1958). Tokyo Tower was mortgaged
Mortgage loan
A mortgage loan is a loan secured by real property through the use of a mortgage note which evidences the existence of the loan and the encumbrance of that realty through the granting of a mortgage which secures the loan...
for ¥10 billion in 2000.
Functions
Broadcasting
Tokyo Tower, a member of the World Federation of Great Towers, is utilized by several organizations for various broadcasting purposes. The structure was originally intended for broadcasting television, but radio antennas were installed in 1961 because it could accommodate them. The tower now broadcasts analog televisionAnalog television
Analog television is the analog transmission that involves the broadcasting of encoded analog audio and analog video signal: one in which the message conveyed by the broadcast signal is a function of deliberate variations in the amplitude and/or frequency of the signal...
, digital television
Digital television
Digital television is the transmission of audio and video by digital signals, in contrast to the analog signals used by analog TV...
, radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
and digital radio
Digital radio
Digital radio has several meanings:1. Today the most common meaning is digital radio broadcasting technologies, such as the digital audio broadcasting system, also known as Eureka 147. In these systems, the analog audio signal is digitized into zeros and ones, compressed using formats such as...
. Stations that use the tower's antenna include:
|
Japan currently employs both analog and digital broadcasting, but by July 2011 all television broadcasting is to be digital. Tokyo Tower is not a reliable broadcasting antenna for completely digital broadcasting because the tower is not tall enough to transmit the higher frequency waves needed to areas surrounded by forests or high-rise buildings. As an alternative, a new 634-metre-tall (2,080 ft) tower called the Tokyo Sky Tree is planned to open in 2012. To make Tokyo Tower more appealing to NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
and five other commercial broadcasters who plan to move their transmitting stations to the new tower, Nihon Denpatō officials have drafted a plan to extend its digital broadcasting antenna by 80 to 100 metres. To increase the height of the tower's antenna by 100 metres, the structure itself will have to be lengthened by 20 metres, which would cost approximately ¥4 billion. In addition to covering this cost, the company would put ¥3.5 billion into refurbishing the transmitting station, offering four times more area to each broadcaster. Current Tokyo aviation restrictions limit Tokyo Tower's height, but current Nihon Denpatō President Shin Maeda has stated that the company plans to discuss the matter with related ministries and agencies. If these plans are not realized, however, Tokyo Tower is expected to stop transmitting digital TV radio waves with the exception of Open University of Japan
Open University of Japan
is a distance learning university which has students all over Japan; it accepted its first students in 1985.Although founded by the national government initiative with a single-issue law and heavily subsidised by the government, it was established by as a , the University classified as a private...
, who will continue to broadcast through the tower. FM radio stations will also continue to utilize the tower for broadcasting in the Tokyo area. Masahiro Kawada, the tower's planning director, also pointed out the possibility of the tower becoming a backup for the Tokyo Sky Tree, depending on what the TV broadcasters want or need. The tip of the antenna was damaged on March 11, 2011 as a result of the Tōhoku earthquake
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
The 2011 earthquake off the Pacific coast of Tohoku, also known as the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, or the Great East Japan Earthquake, was a magnitude 9.0 undersea megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 JST on Friday, 11 March 2011, with the epicenter approximately east...
.
Attractions
FootTown
Located in the base of the tower is a 4-storey building known as FootTown. The first floor includes the Aquarium Gallery, a reception hall, the 400-person-capacity "Tower Restaurant," a FamilyMartFamilyMart
is a convenience store franchise chain first opened in Japan on September 1, 1981. FamilyMart is Japan's third largest convenience store chain, behind 7-Eleven and Lawson, and the largest chain store in South Korea. FamilyMart is owned and overseen by FamilyMart Company, Limited...
convenience store and a souvenir shop. This floor's main attractions, however, are the three elevators that serve as a direct ride to the Main Observatory. The second floor is primarily a food and shopping area. In addition to the five standalone restaurants, the second floor's food court
Food court
A food court is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food vendors and provides a common area for self-serve dining. Food courts may be found in shopping malls and airports, and in various regions may be a standalone development...
consists of four restaurants, including a McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
and a Pizza-La
Pizza-La
is the highest-grossing pizza chain in Japan. Franchises of the chain are located in 34 of Japan's 47 prefectures. The company has its headquarters in the in southern Aoyama, Minato, Tokyo....
.
FootTown's third and fourth floors house several tourist attractions. The third floor is home to the Guinness World Records Museum Tokyo, a museum that houses life-size figures, photo panels and memorabilia depicting interesting records that have been authenticated by the Guinness Book. The Tokyo Tower Wax Museum, opened in 1970, displays wax figures imported from London where they were made. The figures on display range from pop culture icons such as The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
to historical figures such as Jesus Christ. A hologram gallery named the Gallery DeLux, a lounge and a few specialty stores are also located on this floor. Tokyo Tower's Trick Art Gallery is located on the building's forth and final floor. This gallery displays optical illusion
Optical illusion
An optical illusion is characterized by visually perceived images that differ from objective reality. The information gathered by the eye is processed in the brain to give a perception that does not tally with a physical measurement of the stimulus source...
s, including paintings and objects that visitors can interact with.
On the roof of the FootTown building is a small amusement park that contains several small rides and hosts live performances for children. On weekends and holidays, visitors can use the roof to access the tower's outside stairwell. At approximately 660 steps, the stairwell is an alternative to the tower's elevators and leads directly to the Main Observatory.
Observation decks
Mount Fuji
is the highest mountain in Japan at . An active stratovolcano that last erupted in 1707–08, Mount Fuji lies about south-west of Tokyo, and can be seen from there on a clear day. Mount Fuji's exceptionally symmetrical cone is a well-known symbol of Japan and it is frequently depicted in art and...
can be seen to the south. The two-floor Main Observatory, located at 145 m, provides visitors with a view of Tokyo and houses several attractions. The first floor is home to a small café and Club 333, a small stage that is used to put on live music shows. Also located on this floor are two "look down windows" that allow visitors to stand over a small clear window and look to the ground 145 m below. The second floor (at 150 m) houses a small souvenir shop and a Shinto
Shinto
or Shintoism, also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. It is a set of practices, to be carried out diligently, to establish a connection between present day Japan and its ancient past. Shinto practices were first recorded and codified in the written...
shrine, the highest shrine in the special wards of Tokyo
Special wards of Tokyo
The are 23 municipalities that together make up the core and the most populous part of Tokyo, Japan. Together, they occupy the land that was the city of Tokyo before it was abolished in 1943. The special wards' structure was established under the Japanese Local Autonomy Law and is unique to...
. The elevators leading to the Special Observatory are also located on this floor. Departing on these elevators, visitors can reach the Special Observatory. a small, circular, completely enclosed observatory located at 250 m.
Appearance
Tokyo Tower requires a total of 28000 litre of paint to completely paint the structure white and international orangeInternational orange
International orange is a color used in the aerospace industry to set things apart from their surroundings, similar to safety orange, but deeper and with a more reddish tone.-International orange :...
, complying with air safety
Air safety
Air safety is a term encompassing the theory, investigation and categorization of flight failures, and the prevention of such failures through regulation, education and training. It can also be applied in the context of campaigns that inform the public as to the safety of air travel.-United...
regulations. Every five years the tower undergoes a year-long makeover in which it is completely repainted. Before the tower's 30th anniversary in 1987, the only lighting on the tower were light bulbs located on the corner contours that extended from the base to the antenna. In the spring of 1987, Nihon Denpatō invited lighting designer
Lighting designer
The role of the lighting designer within theatre is to work with the director, choreographer, set designer, costume designer, and sound designer to create an overall 'look' for the show in response to the text, while keeping in mind issues of visibility, safety and cost...
Motoko Ishii
Motoko Ishii
is a Japanese lighting designer. From 1965 to 1967 she worked at lighting-design offices in Finland and Germany. Returning to Japan in 1968, she established the Ishii Motoko Design Office....
to visit the tower. Since its opening 30 years earlier, the tower's annual ticket sales had dropped significantly, and in a bid to revitalize the tower and again establish it as an important tourist attraction and symbol of Tokyo, Ishii was hired to redesign Tokyo Tower's lighting arrangement.
Unveiled in 1989, the new lighting arrangement required the removal of the contour-outlining light bulbs and the installation of 176 floodlights in and around the tower's frame. From dusk to midnight, the floodlights illuminate the entire tower. Sodium vapor lamp
Sodium vapor lamp
A sodium vapor lamp is a gas discharge lamp that uses sodium in an excited state to produce light. There are two varieties of such lamps: low pressure and high pressure...
s are used from October 2 to July 6 to cover the tower in an orange color. From July 7 to October 1, the lights are changed to metal halide lamp
Metal halide lamp
Metal-halide lamps, a member of the high-intensity discharge family of lamps, produce high light output for their size, making them a compact, powerful, and efficient light source. By adding rare earth metal salts to the mercury vapor lamp, improved luminous efficacy and light color is obtained...
s to illuminate the tower with a white color. The reasoning behind the change is a seasonal one. Ishii reasoned that orange is a warmer color and helps to offset the cold winter months. Conversely, white is thought a cool color that helps during the hot summer months.
Occasionally, Tokyo Tower's lighting is changed to specific, unique arrangements for special events. The tower is specially lit for some annual events.
Since 2000, the entire tower has been illuminated in a pink light on October 1 to highlight the beginning of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an annual international health campaign organized by major breast cancer charities every October to increase awareness of the disease and to raise funds for research into its cause, prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure...
. The tower has also had a variety of special lighting arrangements for Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
since 1994. Special Japanese events have also been cause to light the tower in several nontraditional ways. In 2002, alternating sections of the tower were lit blue to help celebrate the opening of the FIFA World Cup
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...
in Japan. Alternating sections of the tower were lit green on Saint Patrick's Day
Saint Patrick's Day
Saint Patrick's Day is a religious holiday celebrated internationally on 17 March. It commemorates Saint Patrick , the most commonly recognised of the patron saints of :Ireland, and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland. It is observed by the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion , the Eastern...
in 2007 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Japanese-Irish relations. On a few occasions, Tokyo Tower has even been specially lit to correspond with corporate events. For example, the top half of the tower was lit green to correspond with the Japanese premiere of The Matrix Reloaded
The Matrix Reloaded
The Matrix Reloaded is a 2003 American science fiction film and the second installment in The Matrix trilogy, written and directed by the Wachowskis. It premiered on May 7, 2003, in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, and went on general release by Warner Bros. in North American theaters on May 15,...
and different sections of the tower were lit red, white and black to commemorate the first day of sales of Coca-Cola C2
Coca-Cola C2
Coca-Cola C2 was a cola-flavored beverage introduced by The Coca-Cola Company first in Japan, then later on 7 June 2004 in the United States , in response to the low-carbohydrate diet trend...
. The tower was also uniquely lit for the new millennium in 2000 with Motoko Ishii again reprising her role as the designer. In December 2008, Nihon Denpatō spent $6.5 million to create a new nighttime illumination scheme—titled the "Diamond Veil"—to celebrate the tower's 50th anniversary. The arrangement featured 276 lights in seven colors equally distributed across the towers four faces.
Digital terrestrial television
Digital terrestrial television is the technological evolution of broadcast television and advance from analog television, which broadcasts land-based signals...
first being available in the Kantō region
Kanto region
The is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa. Within its boundaries, slightly more than 40 percent of the land area is the Kantō Plain....
on December 1, 2005, each side of the Main Observatory displayed the characters —an abbreviation for . More recently, the observatory displayed both "TOKYO" and "2016" to stress Tokyo's 2016 Olympic bid
Tokyo 2016 Olympic bid
The Tokyo bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics was an unsuccessful campaign, first recognized by the International Olympic Committee on September 14, 2007...
. Primitive images, such as hearts, have also been displayed using the observatory's windows.
In popular culture
Just as the Eiffel TowerEiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
is often used in popular culture to immediately locate a scene in Paris, France, Tokyo Tower is often used in the same way for Tokyo. It is used in anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
and manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
such as Magic Knight Rayearth
Magic Knight Rayearth
is a Japanese manga series created by Clamp, a manga artist team made up by Satsuki Igarashi, Ageha Ohkawa, Tsubaki Nekoi and Mokona. Rayearth combines elements from the magical girl and mecha anime genres with parallel world fantasy....
, Please Save My Earth
Please Save My Earth
, sometimes abbreviated Bokutama, is a shōjo science fiction manga by Saki Hiwatari. It was published by Hakusensha from 1987 to 1994 in Hana to Yume and collected in 21 tankōbon volumes. The series was adapted as a six-part anime OVA in 1993...
, Cardcaptor Sakura
Cardcaptor Sakura
, abbreviated as CCS and also known as Cardcaptors, is a Japanese shōjo manga series written and illustrated by the manga artist group Clamp. The manga was originally serialized monthly in Nakayoshi from the May 1996 until the June 2000 issue, and later published in 12 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha...
, Digimon
Digimon
, short for , is a Japanese media franchise encompassing digital toys, anime, manga and video games. The franchise's eponymous creatures are monsters of various forms living in a "Digital World", a parallel universe that originated from Earth's various communication networks.-Conception and...
and Sailor Moon
Sailor Moon
Sailor Moon, known as , is a media franchise created by manga artist Naoko Takeuchi. Fred Patten credits Takeuchi with popularizing the concept of a team of magical girls, and Paul Gravett credits the series with "revitalizing" the magical-girl genre itself...
. The tower is also frequently used in the Japanese kaiju
Kaiju
is a Japanese word that means "strange beast," but often translated in English as "monster". Specifically, it is used to refer to a genre of tokusatsu entertainment....
(giant monster) film genre. It has been the location of the climactic battles between Godzilla
Godzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
, Mothra
Mothra
is a kaiju, a type of fictional monster who first appeared in the serialized novel The Luminous Fairies and Mothra by Takehiko Fukunaga, Shinichiro Nakamura, and Yoshie Hotta...
and King Kong
King Kong
King Kong is a fictional character, a giant movie monster resembling a gorilla, that has appeared in several movies since 1933. These include the groundbreaking 1933 movie, the film remakes of 1976 and 2005, as well as various sequels of the first two films...
(King Kong Escapes
King Kong Escapes
King Kong Escapes, released in Japan as , is a 1967 Kaiju film. A Japanese/American co-production from Toho and Rankin/Bass . Directed by Ishiro Honda and featuring special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya, the film starred both American actors alongside Japanese actors...
) wherein it is frequently destroyed and rebuilt. Based on the popular manga series by Ryōhei Saigan, the 2005 film Always Sanchōme no Yūhi
Always Sanchome no Yuhi
is a 2005 film co-written and directed by the Japanese filmmaker Takashi Yamazaki, based on Ryōhei Saigan's long-running manga Sanchōme no Yūhi. It was chosen as Best Film at the Japan Academy Prize ceremony.-Plot summary:...
was a nostalgic view of life in the neighbourhoods under the construction of the Tokyo Tower. The Tokyo Tower also makes appearances in Tokyo Mater
Cars Toons
Mater's Tall Tales is an American animated short television series by Pixar featuring the characters Mater and Lightning McQueen from the film Cars. The series' first broadcast was on October 27, 2008, on Toon Disney, Disney Channel and ABC Family...
, a Pixar
Pixar
Pixar Animation Studios, pronounced , is an American computer animation film studio based in Emeryville, California. The studio has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes, and three Grammy Awards, among many other awards and acknowledgments. Its films have made over $6.3 billion worldwide...
short film, and in the "Samurai Blue" level of Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii: Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2
Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2
is a rhythm video game developed by iNiS and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld video game console. It is the third game to use its gameplay, and is the sequel to Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan while incorporating many of the improvements in gameplay made in Elite Beat Agents...
, a rhythm game for the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
. The Tokyo Tower has 2 mascots named Noppon. There are two brothers, Older Brother who wears blue dungarees and Younger Brother who wears red dungarees. They were 'born' on December 23, 1998 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Tokyo Tower.
See also
- Tokyo Sky Tree
- Japanese mediaJapanese mediaThe communications media of Japan include numerous television and radio networks as well as newspapers and magazines in Japan. For the most part, television networks were established based on the capital contribution from existing radio networks at that time...
- List of towers
- List of tallest buildings and structures in Tokyo
- List of tallest freestanding structures in the world