2008 Opening and 2009 Closure
The wheel first opened to the public on 20 December 2008, two years behind schedule. Its most recently postponed opening ceremony, scheduled for 28 November 2008, had been cancelled due to bad weather and delays in procuring parts.
On 30 January 2009, 40 days after opening, the wheel was shut down indefinitely after structural defects, including buckling and cracks, were detected. The operators initially blamed the 2009 Southeastern Australia heat wave for causing the damage. It was not known when the wheel would reopen.
Upon further investigation, engineers working on the wheel discovered the cracks were not caused by the heatwave but rather a problem in the original design. Fourteen cracks were found in the steel.
An undated press release on the operator's official website stated: "The Southern Star Observation Wheel was temporarily closed in January 2009. As a result of extensive design and technical reviews a conclusion was reached to build a new wheel."
Read more about this topic: The Southern Star (observation Wheel)
Famous quotes containing the word opening:
“And then ... he flung open the door of my compartment, and ushered in “Ma young and lovely lady!” I muttered to myself with some bitterness. “And this is, of course, the opening scene of Vol. I. She is the Heroine. And I am one of those subordinate characters that only turn up when needed for the development of her destiny, and whose final appearance is outside the church, waiting to greet the Happy Pair!””
—Lewis Carroll [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson] (1832–1898)