The skyscraper set to oust Burj Khalifa as world’s tallest building: Japan’s Sky Mile Tower
The skyscraper would be built like a mini-city to combat climate change under the 'Next Tokyo 2045' project.
The 2,716.5 feet (nearly half a mile) tall Burj Khalifa in Dubai which has since long maintained its place as the world’s highest skyscraper is soon set to be dethroned by Japan’s ambitious project Sky Mile Tower.
The Sky Mile Tower which is set to be completed by the year 2045 is a mini-city project under Japan’s ‘Next Tokyo’ plan. Standing at a height of about 1 mile it will be double the height of Burj Khalifa and almost 5 times higher than the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
The brains behind the structure are architects Kohn Pedersen Fox and structural engineering firm Leslie E. Robertson Associates. Interestingly, it is not merely a structure but a mini-city built to combat climate change. The tower would house a massive 421 floors with a capacity of almost 55,000 people.
Japan’s climate-conscious ‘Next Tokyo 2045’ Project:
The motivation behind the ‘Next Tokyo’ 2045 mini-city project is Japan’s vulnerability to seismic activity and natural calamities. Located in Tokyo Bay, the plan would see the creation of the 5,577 feet tall skyscraper ‘Sky Mile Tower’ that is aimed to prepare Tokyo to combat violent climate eruptions including the Tsunami threat.
The structure would be hexagonal in shape to ensure optimal wind resistance. It would be independent of traditional water pump mechanism as water will be directly filtered from the atmosphere and stored in the building’s exterior.
The skyscraper would be a powerhouse accommodating everything ranging from agriculture to residential units to commercial activity. It would also feature multilevel sky lobbies where residents would share amenities such as shopping centres, restaurants, hotels, gyms, libraries, and health clinics. The tower would be navigated via cable-free elevators which would move both vertically and horizontally.
Alongside the tallest building, ‘Next Tokyo’ would feature a chain of man-made, hexagonal islands, which would act as a barrier to protect Japan’s capital from flooding. The islands would further house around 500,000 people. They would reportedly be connected by Hyperloop, Elon Musk’s high-speed transit system.
