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Burj Khalifa

BOORJ khah-LEE-fah
Tall Buildings and Skyscrapers

The tower in Dubai designed by Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill and opened in 2010, rising 828 meters on a Y-shaped buttressed core plan, the tallest building in the world by a margin of hundreds of meters. Its setbacks spiral upward in a form its designers relate to desert flower geometry and to regional tower traditions.

Facts
Building Type
Skyscraper 2
Location
Dubai, United Arab Emirates 2
Completed Year
2004 3
Completed Year
2010 2
Height (m)
828 2
Height to the architectural top per CTBUH, which ranks it the tallest building in the world.
Classification
Standing StatusSourced to the subject's own account
Standing 1
Building Type
Building Type (category)
Skyscraper 2
Connections

Associated With

CTBUH is the body that certifies tall-building height records, including the Burj Khalifa's certification as the world's tallest building.

Source Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Official Site

Designed By

Designed by Adrian Smith as design partner at Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM), the architecture firm of record, before he left to found Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture in 2006.

Source Wikipedia: Adrian Smith (architect)

Has Building Type

Entity-backed identity for the building-type enum value this building already carries, resolved to an architecture concept by an explicit value-to-entity map (phase 3 bucket conversion, docs\design_entity_backed_browse_buckets_20260928.md). The building-type fact itself stays on the building unchanged.

In Style

Source Burj Khalifa (Wikipedia)
Source Burj Khalifa (Wikipedia)
Source Burj Khalifa (Wikipedia)
Source Burj Khalifa (Wikipedia)

Uses Element

A reinforced concrete buttressed core to level 156, steel-framed above.

Source Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Official Site

The tapering spire above the occupied floors is a stainless-steel-clad structure assembled inside the building and jacked into place.

In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Burj Khalifa (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Entity description and the lead of the Wikipedia article
    The Burj Khalifa (previously known as Burj Dubai prior to inauguration) is a megatall skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Designed by the SOM architectural firm, it is the world's tallest structure, with a total height of 829.8 m (2,722 ft, or just over half a mile) and a roof height (excluding the antenna, but including a 242.6 m spire) of 828 m (2,717 ft). It has been the tallest building in the world since its complete inauguration in 2011, surpassing Taipei 101, which had held the record since 2004. Construction of the Burj Khalifa began in 2004; the exterior was completed five year
  • In Style: High-Tech Architecture, Wikipedia categories
    Category:High-tech architecture
  • In Style: Neo-Futurism, Wikipedia categories
    Category:Neo-futurist architecture
  • In Style: Islamic Architecture, Wikipedia categories
    Category:Islamic architecture in Asia
  • In Style: Postmodern Architecture, Wikipedia categories
    Category:Postmodern architecture in Dubai
View the Source
2. Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Official Site
Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat
  • skyscrapercenter.com/building/burj-khalifa/3, building overview section
    Burj Khalifa has redefined what is possible in the design and engineering of supertall buildings. By combining cutting-edge technologies and cultural influences, the building serves as a global icon that is both a model for future urban centers and speaks to the global movement towards compact, livable urban areas.
  • Uses Element: Reinforced Concrete
  • Associated With: Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, Tallest buildings and height criteria records
View the Source
3. Wikidata: Burj Khalifa
  • Wikidata Q12495, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)
  • Wikidata Q12495, P571 claim (w-bbfill-artsarchag-0926)
View the Source
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.britannica.com/topic/Burj-Khalifa, construction timeline section
Quote, britannica.com/topic/Burj-Khalifa, construction timeline section
The Burj Khalifa took six years to build. Foundational excavation work commenced in January 2004, and the tower was formally opened on January 4, 2010. However, the opening took place before the interior was completed.
View the Source
Wikipedia: Adrian Smith (architect)
WikipediaDesigned By: Adrian Smith, Burj Khalifa design credit
Quote, Designed By: Adrian Smith, Burj Khalifa design credit
He designed the world's tallest structure, Burj Khalifa, as well as the building projected to surpass it, the Jeddah Tower.
View the Source
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