Dubai Skyscrapers - Burj Khalifa

Burj Khalifa

The tallest and most famous building in Dubai is the Burj Khalifa, which is the tallest man-made structure of any kind ever built in the world. Construction began on the Burj Khalifa (originally known as the Burj Dubai) began in 2004; the building's planned final height was kept secret until its topping out in 2009. It became the tallest free-standing structure in the world on 12 September 2007, surpassing the 553 metres (1,814 ft) CN Tower in Toronto, Canada. The building also surpassed the structural height of Taipei 101, the previous tallest building in the world, on 21 July 2007. In April 2008, Burj Khalifa became the tallest man-made structure in the world, surpassing the KVLY-TV mast in Blanchard, North Dakota, United States. On 19 May 2008, it surpassed the height of the now-destroyed Warsaw radio mast in Konstantynów, Gąbin, Poland, becoming the tallest man-made structure ever constructed in history at 649.7 metres (2,132 ft). The skyscraper was officially topped out in January 2009 upon reaching its final height of 828 metres (2,717 ft); Burj Khalifa opened to the public roughly one year later, on 4 January 2010, becoming the official tallest building in the world according to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.