Ostankino TV Tower

Ostankino TV Tower is one of the unofficial symbols of Moscow. By the way, it is not just a beautiful spire in the panorama of the capital, but a real technical breakthrough, which will be interesting for both adults and children to get acquainted with. Fortunately, the Ostankino Tower is often taken on excursions, so you can scrutinize it not only from the outside, but also from the inside.

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Video: Ostankino TV Tower

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History of Ostankinskaya TV Tower

‘ Moscow was served by a television center on Shabolovka. But by the middle of the century, the city began to grow actively. People were getting TV sets and radios, the number of channels was steadily increasing, and the capacity of the old TV center became insufficient. So Soviet engineers received a task from the Ministry of Communications – to create a new, more powerful station that could cover all of Moscow with a signal. The developers were asked to take into account that the city would continue to grow in the future.

The Ministry of Communications organized a competition for the best design of the future transmitting station. Some 40 different designs participated in the contest; all the towers in these plans were built of metal. But the chairman of the contest committee, the outstanding Soviet engineer Nikolai Vasilyevich Nikitin, suddenly suggested that the tower be made not of metal, but of concrete! The engineer’s instincts did not fail him – indeed, the resulting tower would be more powerful and stable than any metal analog. The competitor, to whom Nikitin offered to redesign the plan in accordance with the new material, promised to complete the revisions in three days. Khrushchev subsequently confirmed the construction of the new station, choosing the plan for the graceful tower.

Immediately after the competition, the Moscow government allocated a site in the Cheremushki neighborhood for the construction of the new tower. However, the TV tower did not appear on this site – officials decided to move it to Ostankino. The foundation of the TV tower was laid in 1960. Nikolai Nikitin, who chaired the competition and made a proposal to change the material, became the lead manager of the project. The erection of the tower in Ostankino took 7 years. Even during construction, contemporaries claimed that the Ostankino TV Tower was the pinnacle of engineering and architectural thought of the current time.

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After the foundation was laid, work was suspended for some time due to disagreements between engineers and architects. Nikitin suggested reducing the depth of the foundation – he believed that 3.5-4.6 meters would be quite enough. Engineers and architects consulted for several years, and eventually they managed to convince Nikitin to deepen the foundation by another 1.5 meters. At the same time, some changes were made to the tower design: the number of supports was increased from 4 to 10, and the architects gave the building a modern recognizable look. The final design of the Ostankinskaya TV Tower was approved on March 22, 1963, and work resumed, with the last change being an increase in height from the designed 505 to 540 meters.

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‘ CN Tower. The unique technical structure became a point of attraction for intellectuals from different countries, so that the USSR government actively used the landmark to establish international cooperation. It is with the Ostankino TV Tower that the history of the World Federation of High-Rise Towers begins, which now counts 34 objects. The Federation was created in 1989 on the initiative of the Soviet government and engineers. It should be noted that now it has become more difficult to get on the list of the federation – if before it was enough just to erect a structure of a certain height, now there are more mandatory conditions. Thus, the applicant tower must have a viewing platform, be unique in cultural or historical terms, attract tourists. Fortunately, the Ostankino TV Tower has all these characteristics. It was admired not only by Soviet citizens, but also by experts from other countries. At the time of construction, the Moscow TV Tower was the tallest free-standing tower in the world. Now it has been overtaken by towers from Tokyo, Guangzhou and Toronto, but in Europe the Ostankinskaya TV Tower has maintained its leading position for more than half a century.

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‘ Ostankinskaya TV Tower from the side
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Sights of the TV Tower in Ostankino

The Ostankino TV Tower is world famous, and not just for its height and signal power.

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Superfast elevator

After the fire in 2000, the elevator systems in the Ostankino TV Tower were updated. Now the tower has 4 new ThyssenKrupp high-speed elevators and one service elevator, manufactured at the Shcherbinsky elevator plant. The speed of passenger elevators is 7 meters per second! For comparison, ordinary elevators in residential buildings move at a speed of 1-3 meters per second, and 5 meters per second is already perceived by most people as a very high speed.

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If you are afraid to take such a fast elevator, you can use a restaurant elevator – it moves at a more familiar speed of 4 meters per second.

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‘ Superfast elevatorhttps://trevaladvisor.com/img%img/Ostankinskaya-telebashnyareterte/Lift-2.jpg” alt=””/>‘
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Observation deck

The observation deck of the Ostankino Tower is the highest in Moscow. It is located at a height of 337 meters. No wonder that it is from it that photographers like to make beautiful cityscapes and panoramas of the capital! In good weather, the view of the circular panorama is 70 kilometers.

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The peculiarity of the observation deck of the tower is a glass floor, which at first may frighten impressionable visitors, but you can get used to it pretty quickly. In addition, not the entire floor of the platform is made of glass, so if you are afraid, you can safely walk on an ordinary floor. In fact, the only danger of the glass floor is its slippery coating. Otherwise, you can even jump on the glass floor without fear of falling.

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The observation deck is divided into two areas – open and closed. The open view is certainly better, but it is only available from May through October. During the winter months it is closed, and then you can admire the panorama only from the covered area.

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‘ Viewing platform
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Restaurant complex “7 Heaven”

The Seventh Heaven restaurant completely burned out in a fire in 2000, so for 16 years it was in a state of reconstruction. Only in 2016 the owners of the restaurant, having rebranded the restaurant, reopened the doors of the establishment – now under the stylized name “7 NEBO”. The area of the renovated restaurant is 600 m².

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Now “7 Heaven” is one of the highest restaurants in the world. In addition, it is installed on a rotating platform.

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Everyone can visit the restaurant, but it is most convenient to get to it during a tour of the Ostankino TV Tower. The restaurant occupies three floors. On the third floor you can eat the most democratic dishes: burgers, sweet pastries. The second floor is a cafe serving light snacks, steaks, salads, soups and hot dishes. Drinks include wine, strong alcohol, different kinds of beer, morses, freshly squeezed juices, lemonades, milk shakes, tea and coffee. The cafe has 62 seats, reservations are required. The first floor is occupied by the restaurant, where the most expensive and exquisite dishes are served. A table in the restaurant must be reserved. Keep in mind that the demand for tables in “7 Heaven” is very high, so it is better to call the institution as early as possible.

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‘ Seventh Sky Restaurant
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Multimedia Complex

The main magnet for tourists is the multimedia complex, which houses highly technical equipment running on state-of-the-art software. The complex immerses into the world of radio and television. Visitors will be able to get acquainted with the advanced technologies in this field, and at the same time to see how the experimental weather station works. The exposition of the interactive multimedia complex includes an analytical center and a construction museum, which are located in the lobby of the TV tower and on the observation deck at the 337 m mark. The complex has visual modules that show average daily weather data, information about lightning and thunderstorms.

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If you are interested in the history of the Ostankino TV Tower, the multimedia complex will be able to offer documents, photos and other artifacts that tell about the design and construction of this tower.

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‘ Multimedia complex
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Excursions and prices

Now the entrance to the Ostankino TV Tower is possible both as a free visit and as part of an excursion. The excursion bureau offers two routes: “Panorama of Moscow” and “The Tower from the inside”. In the first variant, special attention is paid to the observation deck, and in the second – to the multimedia complex and engineering features.

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The “Moscow Panorama” route includes:

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  • a ride on a super high-speed elevator;
  • climbing up to the observation deck and viewing the city;
  • a visit to a multimedia complex.

The “Tower from the Inside Out” itinerary includes:

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  • climbing the technical level of the Ostankino TV Tower;
  • a guide’s story about the engineering features of the tower;
  • a ride on a super high-speed elevator;
  • a panorama of the capital city from the observation deck;
  • a visit to the multimedia complex.
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