That’s right… The CN Tower has been surpassed in height by a Dubai building, under construction. This means the CN Tower no longer holds the title as “the world’s tallest building”. The Burj Dubai, a US$4.1-billion hotel, business, and residential complex under construction in the United Arab Emirates, yesterday reached slightly above the CN Tower’s 553-metres.

The Burj Dubai is expected to reach even higher as construction continues, and a soaring 800-metres when finally complete. 145 floors have already been complete in the building, where a new floor is put up about every three days. The complete Burj Dubai is expected to have 165 floors.

The CN Tower held “the world’s tallest building” title for the last 31 years. Completed in 1974, the CN Tower cost $63-million CAD to build, and its construction took 40 months. The tower’s primary function is a broadcast transmission facility. The tower also has a revolving restaurant, and is one of Toronto’s main tourist attractions.

The CN Tower draws nearly 2-million visitors every year. The CN Tower is also recognized as one of the modern wonders of the world by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

More about the Burj Dubai:

• It will be situated on a man-made lake designed to wrap around the tower
• The building will be the first structure with the “world’s tallest” designation to include residential space
• The Burj Dubai is part of a new district in Dubai, which will cost US$22.7 billion
• The district will house 30,000 apartments and the world’s largest shopping mall

Some interesting facts about the CN Tower:

• More than 1,500 workers laboured five days a week, 24 hours a day to build it
• The structure was built to withstand an earthquake of 8.5 on the Richter scale
• It can withstand winds of up to 416 km/h
• Lightning strikes the tower about 75 times each year
• Its glass-cased elevators travel 22 km/h to reach the observation deck in 58 seconds
• On a clear day, visitors on the observation deck can see more than 160 kilometres (past Niagara Falls and across Lake Ontario to New York State)
• The tower’s glass floor section 113 stories above the ground can withstand the weight of 14 adult hippos
• The 360 Restaurant makes a full rotation every 72 minutes