Photo: Space Needle Aerial

The Space Needle was conceived by Edward Carlson for the 1962 World's Fair. It was built on a 120' X 120' plot of ground for $4.5 million. There are 848 steps from the basement to the observation deck with 25 lightning rods on the roof. It sways approximately 1 inch for every 10 m.p.h. of wind and it stands 605 feet tall. The needle's elevators travel 10 m.p.h. and reach the observation deck in 43 seconds. It hosts more than 1 million annual visitors making it the #1 tourist attraction in the Northwest!