Vilnius TV Tower

The Vilnius TV Tower ( _lt. Vilniaus televizijos bokštas) is a 326.5 metre-high (1071 ft) building in the Karoliniškės microdistrict of Vilnius, Lithuania. It is the tallest building in Lithuania, and is occupied by the SC Lithuanian Radio and Television Centre (Lithuanian: "AB Lietuvos radijo ir televizijos centras"). The tower is a member of the World Federation of Great Towers.

The building was designed by V. Obydovas, the engineering section was designed by K. Balėnas. The construction of the tower started on May 31, 1974, and the tower was completed on December 30, 1980. The weight of the whole structure is estimated at 25,000--30,000 tonnes. The structure is composed of a concrete base, a 190 m long hollow reinforced concrete pipe, a reinforced concrete saucer, and a 136 m long steel spike. Radio transmitters are housed in the lower part of the concrete tower with antennas attached to the steel spike.

The TV tower played a major role in the events of January 13, 1991, when 14 unarmed civilians lost their lives and 700 were injured opposing the Soviet military seizure of the tower.The observation deck 160 m from the ground houses the cafe "Paukščių takas" (Lithuanian for Milky Way), offers a picturesque view of the city and its surroundings, and sports a rotating platform that revolves once every 45 minutes. High-speed elevators reach the cafe from ground level in 40 seconds. On clear days, visibility can extend as far as Elektrėnai, a city about 40 km west, where power plants produced much of the electricity for Vilnius in Soviet times.

Bungee jumps are available to the public from the roof of the observation deck. A small museum dedicated to the January 1991 battle is housed on the ground floor, and various markers in the surrounding area indicate places where Lithuanian citizens died while trying to maintain the blockade against Soviet troops.

Since 2000 and 2007, the tower has been decorated like a huge Christmas tree each Christmas season. During the 2006 World Basketball Championship it was decorated with a huge basketball net.

See also

*List of towers
*List of tallest freestanding structures in the world

External links

* [http://www.lrtc.net/en/index.html The web site of the Vilnius TV tower]
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* [http://www.bungee.lt/en/about.html Bungee jumping from the Vilnius TV tower]