Gizmodo: abu dhabi

World's Largest LED Project: Come On, Guys

John Herrman — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 09:41:59 EST

The United Arab Emirates aren't booming like they used to, which is worrying. Judging from the latest, though, the UAE was only about three major architectural undertakings away from building an actual giant penis, so maybe it's for the best.

The Yas Hotel in Dubai's sister Emirate, Abu Dhabi, has earned the impressive (though weirdly categorized) title of the world's largest LED project, which, given that it's comprised of about 5,300 steel panels adorned with over 5000 lighting fixtures, I don't doubt it for a second. The lighting grid can change colors and display patterns, and, though it's a stretch, play low-res video.

Underneath this curvilinear shell is a typically extravagant 500-room hotel, which, bizarrely, is divided by a Formula 1 race track, meaning that this egregious phallic symbol is regularly entered and exited by other compensatory phallic symbols, raced in competition to win yet more phallic symbols, which is a bit too much for me to process, now or ever. [Inhabitat via Flavorwire]

This Is What the Most Leaning Building In the World Looks Like

Jesus Diaz — Fri, 29 May 2009 12:40:00 EDT

This is the Capital Gate, a 525-foot tall tower that leans 18 degrees to the west, 14 degrees more than the Tower of Pisa. And unlike many of these spectacular projects, this one is actually well underway in Abu Dhabi, as you can see in this image:

The building—which will house a 5-star Hyatt hotel—can lean this much thanks to its steel exoskeleton and 490 piles drilled 100 feet into the ground, designed to compensate for gravity, wind, and seismic pressures caused by its peculiar shape. I wonder who is compensating for all the gravity, wind, and seismic economic pressures generated by all this crazy developments in the desert. [ArchDaily]

Driverless, Electricity-Run Taxis Will Dominate UAE Eco-City

Elaine Chow — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 02:00:00 EST

The United Arab Emirates is planning a bunch of “personal rapid transit” devices: driverless taxis that run on electricity and could hit the streets of Masdar as early as this year.

Built by Systematica, the PRT system will help keep Masdar (a planned city in Abu Dhabi) completely car-free. The vehicles travel at speeds of roughly 7 meters per second, with the longest routes planned for about 2.5km, and will be located two stories beneath street level. Riders will pay about the same price they'd normally drop on an equivalent taxi ride.

Morgantown, West Virginia has the the only PRT system in place right now, built in 1975 when the cost of the technology was many times higher. An equivalent system to the Masdar one (though to a much smaller degree) is currently under construction at Heathrow airport in London. [Treehugger via Dvice]

Capital Gate Tower is Four Times as Crooked as the Leaning Tower of Pisa

Sean Fallon — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 13:15:00 EDT

If you thought the Leaning Tower of Pisa was messed up, get a load of the Capital Gate tower currently being constructed in Abu Dhabi. Actually, saying it is "messed up" is incorrect given that the 18 degree westward incline was completely intentional. In fact, the project's architects have submitted a joint application to the Guinness Book of Records to recognize the tower as the 'most inclined in the world.' In order to support the awkward angle of the 35-story structure, the design called for a foundation of extremely dense reinforced steel mesh and 490 piles sunk nearly 100 feet into the ground. We can only wonder how many slaves will die or get injured building that. [World Architecture News via The Design Blog]

Masdar HQ: World's First Positive Energy Building

Haroon Malik — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 13:00:00 EST

The Masdar HQ in Abu Dhabi has big ambitions; the site is planned to be the world's first positive energy building, meaning it will create more energy than it consumes. Checkout some more fantastic images by clicking through the gallery.

The project is expected to cost $300 million, and it will form an impressive center piece to Masdar City, which will be a $22 billion development stretching out beyond Abu Dhabi. The Masdar HQ is the very vision of a greener future. In fact, a roof pier will be the first part of the building to be hoisted into place, which will be covered in solar panels that will generate energy for its own construction. The complete structure will encompass some 1.3 million square feet, and we think the term "intelligent design" should now be redefined to accommodate the Masdar HQ's structural plans. [Product Page via Dvice]