THE world's tallest building explodes like a rocket - as it is lit up by fireworks at its official opening yesterday.The skyscraper, dubbed the Dubai-vory Tower, is more than HALF A MILE high.
That's more than three times the size of Britain's tallest building, Canary Wharf Tower in London.
The 200-storey tower - its exact height revealed as 2,717ft (828m) - was opened by Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. At 828 metres (2,716.5ft), Burj Khalifa is 320 metres taller than Taipei 101, which at 508 metres (1,667 ft) had held the record for the world’s tallest building measured to the architectural top since 2004, the year the project was announced.
But many of its floors were said to be unfinished - with thousands of workers drafted in to plaster walls, cover pipes and lay carpet.
The tower's opening was overshadowed by the global financial crisis - which left Dubai with £62billion debts as property prices plummeted.
The building was named Burj Khalifa - after the United Arab Emirates president who helped Dubai with a £16billion bailout last year.
The building is so tall that it is ten degrees Celsius cooler at the top than at the base.
All design considerations took into account the 12,000 people who will live and work in the tower. The handover to residents of the various components of Burj Khalifa will begin in February.
With a total built-up area of about 6 million sq ft, Burj Khalifa features nearly 2 million sq ft of residential space and over 300,000 sq ft of prime office space, in addition to the area occupied by the keenly awaited Armani Hotel Dubai and the Armani Residences. The tower also features modern lifestyle amenities including clubs, health and fitness facilities, gourmet restaurants and the 124th floor observation deck, 'At the Top.' Burj Khalifa is the focal point of the 500-acre ‘mega-project’ by Emaar Properties, described as the new heart of Dubai.
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