The growth of China until today to make it the 2nd biggest economic powerhouse on the planet has been huge. But for a long time, people still had and some people still have the image of « the factory of the world ». But the reality is now very different, and to change that image, China builds symbols of this power for the world to see.
One of the first representatives of this new image was the Oriental Pearl Tower in Shanghai. But since then, the country wanted and still wants way bigger, the biggest in the world. So here are some of the biggest buildings of its kind that are located in China.
BIGGEST DAM IN THE WORLD
Completely finished in 2012 after many years of construction, the 3 Gorges dam is the biggest hydroelectric station in the world. Located in the Hubei province on the Yangzi Jiang river, the construction is 2335 meters long, 185 meters high and 115 meters large at its base. The dam produces more electricity than all the French dams. It has a system of stairs to get boats from one side to the other, as well as a system of an elevator for boats who need to go faster. Fun fact, when the last part was installed, it slowed – unsignificantly – the rotation speed of the earth.
LONGEST SEA BRIDGE IN THE WORLD
Opened in 2016, the Hong Kong – Zhuhai – Macau sea bridge is the longest sea bridge in the world. The bridge is a part of the greater bay area around the 4 cities of Hong Kong, Macau, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou, that is home to more than 65 million people. It cuts the travel time from Hong Kong to Zhuhai to only 30 minutes. It is 55 kilometers long, has been designed to resist earthquakes up to magnitude 8, super typhoons and containers carriers collision. The steel of the equivalent of 60 Eiffel Towers was used to complete this amazing construction.
BIGGEST RADIO TELESCOPE IN THE WORLD
The FAST (Five hundred meters Aperture Spherical Telescope) built in Guizhou province and finished in 2016 is the largest radio telescope in the world by far. It is located in a remote location far from human life to avoid radio frequencies and its size is astonishing as it is around the equivalent of 30 football fields. There are a lot of high expectations around it. In fact, it has the potential to search for space to discover new planets and eventual extraterrestrial life. The only challenge that China is facing with this one is that there are only 40 people on the planet that are able to supervise the use of this equipment.
LARGEST BUILDING IN THE WORLD
The New Century Global Center was opened in 2013 in Chengdu, Sichuan and the numbers related to this building are huge. The building is 100 meters high, 500 meters long and 400 meters large, and has a floor area of no less than 1 700 000 meters square. To put this number in perspective, the building is only 300 000 meters square shy of the size of Monaco ( 2 million square meters). It is home to hotels, work offices, cinemas, many shops, and a water park. It smashed the previous record held by a Dubai mall as it is twice the size.
BIGGEST CASINO IN THE WORLD
We spoke about the largest building in the world with the New Century Global Center. Venetian Macau is also in the top 10 and is none other than the biggest casino in the world. The facility has 3 000 hotel rooms, 110 000 square meters of reception spaces, 51 000 square meters of casino including 3 400 slot machines and around 800 tables. The complex also includes the 15 000 seats Cotai Arena hosting many events such as sports, concerts, and shows.
I have personally seen some of these buildings such as the Hong Kong – Zhuhai – Macau bridge and the New Century Global Center. I also had the chance to enter inside the Venetian in Macau and it is really impressive. These constructions really showcase the economic power of China today. What will be the next China astonishing constructions?