Archinect - News

Washington Monument reopens after lengthy renovation

2019-09-20T14:02:00-04:00

The Washington Monument will again welcome visitors up to its observation deck, where, from more than 500 feet in the air, visitors can see national landmarks including the U.S. Capitol, Washington National Cathedral, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, the Lincoln Memorial and the Jefferson Memorial. But first, you have to go through security.

After undergoing a 3-year renovation, including elevator upgrades and adding a new glass-and-steel security screening center designed by Beyer Blinder Belle Architects & Planners, the 555-foot-tall obelisk reopened to the public on Thursday, September 19th.

Saturn V rocket to be projected onto the Washington Monument

2019-07-10T13:23:00-04:00

As the nationwide effort to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo moon landing kicks off, the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. has unveiled plans to project a representation of a Saturn V rocket onto the Washington Monument.

The projection is designed by 59 Productions, an international team made up of artists, architects, and technologists that has brought multi-media events to the Guggenheim Bilbao museum and Edinburgh Castle, among other notable structures.

The projection in Washington, D.C. will take place for five nights starting on July 16th, culminating with a series of multi-media celebrations that will "unfold on the face of the Washington Monument" while being accompanied by "supporting screens, including a 40-foot-wide recreation of the famous Kennedy Space Center countdown clock," according to the museum.

Site map showing the projection areas around the Washington Monument. Image courtesy of the National Air and Space Museum.

On July 19th, the ...

Turns out the Washington Monument is shorter than we thought

2015-02-16T15:06:00-05:00

Using new international measurement standards and technology not available in the past, NOAA’s National Geodetic Survey has calculated the official architectural height of the Washington Monument to be 554 feet 7 11/32 inches [...]. Although the newly established architectural height differs from the historical height of 555 feet 5⅛ inches, neither the starting point nor the so-called “standard deviation” used for the original 1884 measurement is known [...].

Washington Monument Set to Reopen Today

2014-05-12T13:01:00-04:00

More than 150 cracks have been repaired, rainwater leaks have been sealed, and the 130-year-old Washington Monument is set to reopen Monday for the first time in nearly three years since an earthquake caused widespread damage. The memorial honoring George Washington has been closed for about 33 months for engineers to conduct an extensive analysis and restoration of the 555-foot stone obelisk that was once the tallest structure in the world.