"Atom: Hope"
(Slogan that greeted visitors to the Atomium in 1958).
"The Atomium is a giants dream of the future, frozen in steel and suspended in the Belgian sky". - Anon.
The first stop on my Brussels visit was to the iconic Atomium structure situated on the northern outskirts of the city in the Heysel district. The excitement rose as I glimpsed its unique structure from the Metro. Leaving the Metro station and then coming face to face with the building was quite an experience, something between awe and curiosity, as it was like encountering something quite alien. It looked truly magnificent in the bright, early morning sunshine of a September day. The Atomium consists of 9 spheres, 18 m in diameter which each weigh approximately 250 tonnes. They are supported by 20 tubes and the whole structure weighs in at 2,500 tonnes. It is an iconic piece of architecture synonymous with both Belgium and the city of Brussels itself, appearing both futuristic and retro at the same time. It was a vision of the peaceful use of atomic energy for scientific purposes that determined the design and construction of the Atomium. The building was designed and built for the Brussels World's Fair (1958), for which it was the flagship building and emblem. The slogan "A world for a better life for mankind" for the Fair demonstrated the expression of the democratic will to maintain peace among all nations, of faith in both technical and scientific progress, and an optimistic vision of the future of the new, modern and hyper-technological world that should enable mankind to live better lives. The Atomium was intended to be a temporary structure solely for the duration of the 1958 World's Fair. It proved so popular however, providing magnificent views over the city of Brussels that it was retained as a structure for tourism undergoing restoration in 2004-2006. Each World's Fair has a theme and a flagship building. In this edition, science was the theme. In 1958, unlike today, the whole world truly believed that science would solve all our problems and improve our lives. For Expo 58, designers needed to find a way to magnify the atom and its applications with an exceptional pavilion. The engineer, André Waterkeyn, who was head of the economic department at Fabrimétal at the time was made responsible for its development. Waterkeyn remarked that, in nature, iron atoms are organised according to a regular cubic structure that could be scaled up and reproduced as a building. He then created an elementary iron crystal design magnified 165 billion times that today forms the cube on the tip of the Atomium, with 1 atom at each angle connected to each other with 20 tubes, the whole supported by 3 large bi-pod braces. The Atomium is thus shaped like a cube on its side. Despite its message of peace and fraternity among nations, the World Fair of 58 there were Cold War tensions. Memories of the destruction caused by the atom bombs in WWII were still on the public's minds and there was an arms race taking place between the United States and the Soviet Union, therefore reassurance of the peaceful use of the atom was needed. In his project, André Waterkeyn displayed positive presentations in the Atomium's spheres about the benefits of this domesticated atom with the slogan that greeted the visitors "Atom: hope". Before the Atomium's construction major wind tunnel tests were conducted in order to model the wind resistance of its proposed spheres, as this was the first such construction of a design as unique as this. The decision was taken to build the framework of the spheres in steel and to coat their outer shells in aluminium. Since the construction had to be fast and simple, the Atomium was designed like a Meccano set with as many standardised parts as possible that could be easily assembled on site. Highly elastic steel was used to cope with the expansion due to variations in temperature. The outer surface of the spheres was a challenge, because no existing structure could be used as a model. The shell or “skin” of each sphere is made up of 48 identical spherical triangles. Each of these triangular panels is made up of smaller triangles, which means nearly 9,000 plates for the outer covering. The plates were bolted together, with plastic joints between them to cope with the expansion of the metal. The spheres were subjected to an electrochemical treatment and anodised to give them the shiny appearance imagined by André Waterkeyn and the Polak brothers. Windows were installed in the top sphere and in the lower spheres that ended the visit in 1958. The other six spheres feature elliptical skylights to add to the artificial lighting. No windows were made in these spheres to limit the vantage points and avoid slowing the flow of visitors. The Atomium was completed on 25 March 1958, just one month before the opening of the Expo. An exhibition highlighting the peaceful uses of nuclear energy was installed in four spheres (base, central, and two lower spheres). A 250-seat restaurant was created in the top sphere by the Belgian architect Stanislas Jasinski, which still remains today. The only significant contemporary modification to the Atomium is the installation of a glass roof and light display in the lift, which gives the thrilling impression of travelling at high speed to the top sphere. The views from the top sphere of the surrounding Brussels landscape and greenery are quite breathtaking as you can see from the pictures below. I was so lucky to have been there on a sunny, cloudless day to take in the vistas. The Atomium holds several records. In 1958 the Atomium was ranked the 6th largest built metal structure in the world and had the fastest lift in Europe. It could carry 500 people an hour at a speed of 5 metres per second (18 km/h). In 1958, the escalators were among the fastest in Europe. The longest measures 35 metres and could carry 3000 people per hour. The Atomium is the only major surviving remnant of Expo 58, it was almost demolished in the late 1990s because of its state of disrepair and lack of enough visitors to make it financially viable. In 2001, a renovation project was submitted The restoration was scheduled to take place between March 2004 and February 2006. The project had to respect the integrity of the original structure as much as possible, while adapting it to the needs of today’s visitors in terms of comfort and safety. The entire outer skin of the Atomium was peeled away, and 1.000 of the original triangular plates covering the spheres were auctioned off to pay for its new metal shell. Stainless steel was used instead of aluminium on the new casing, because it was found to be more resistant to corrosion and provides better sound insulation. The Atomium is a landmark in the Brussels skyline, a monumental structure where sculpture meets architecture and where the cube flirts with the sphere, a remnant of the past with resolutely futuristic looks.
Place de l'Atomium 1,
1020 Brussels,
Belgium
