Burj Khalifa United Arab Emirates

Legendary

The tallest building in the world since 2009.

The Burj Khalifa was kept a secret while it was being built. No one outside the project knew exactly how tall it would end up being.

That secrecy paid off. In 2009, the building became the tallest in the world, beating a tower in Taiwan called Taipei 101 by more than 300 meters.

Construction began in January 2004. Workers built the tower using a Y-shaped design, inspired by the shape of a desert flower called the Hymenocallis.

The tower has 163 floors above ground, making it the building with the most floors anywhere in the world. It reaches a total height of 828 meters, more than half a mile straight up.

At first, the building was called Burj Dubai. Everything changed just before it officially opened.

Dubai faced a serious money crisis in 2008. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the leader of the United Arab Emirates, helped provide funding that kept the project moving forward.

To thank him, the building was renamed Burj Khalifa right at its opening ceremony in January 2010. The new name was a surprise, even to the people who built it.

Inside, the Burj Khalifa holds homes, offices, a hotel, restaurants, and observation decks with sweeping views over the city. It remains the tallest building on Earth today.

Ride the elevator up to the observation deck for panoramic views across Dubai. Watch the fountain show at the base of the tower, where water dances to music each evening. Look up at night, when the building lights up in colorful patterns across its entire height.