The Water Cube

The National Aquatics Center, also known as Water Cube, was built in Olympic Green as one of the most dramatic and exciting venues to host sporting events for the Beijing Olympics in 2008. It is a landmark project in the 2008 Beijing Olympics Game. The design of the Water Cube was derived from the victorious proposal in the international architectural competition for the aquatics center project. The competition, was judged by a panel of international architects, engineers and Chinese academics. The project started on December 24th 2003 and completed on January 28th 2008. The design of the water cube is based on the natural formation of more than 4,000 soap bubbles, which gives a random appearance; the largest bubble is 9m in diameter. The wall and proof of the cube both have three layers and comprise a steel space frame by over 30,000 steel structural members. None of the two are placed identically, the design of the project associates water, as a structural and thematic leitmotiv, with the square, important in Chinese tradition and mythology. As an energy-saving building, Water Cube has its unique features. It uses solar energy to heat the pools and the interior area, all backwash water is filtered and returned to the pools. This system is highly water efficient in the face of Beijing's sporadic rainfall patterns and potential low water levels. After the Olympic Games, the landmark building is to be used as a multi-purpose leisure and swimming centre, as well as swimming pools, and will include a gym, ice-skating facility and a cinema. The Water Cube is a post from: Traveling China from Traveling China http://www.chinaya.org

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