For the Brussels world exhibition in 1958, as in other cities before, they wanted to build a construction that would be decisive for this event, something with a "wow" effect. In the end, a structure was chosen that would put Belgian metallurgy in the limelight. The Atomium has the shape of an iron crystal structure magnified 165 billion times. The steel construction is 102 meters high and includes 9 aluminum spheres of 18 meters in diameter, five of which are accessible to the public. There is a restaurant in the top sphere. It took two years to build and was originally planned to be demolished six months after the exhibition. Due to the success of visitors, however, it was then decided to leave the Atomium for the time being, but in the early 2000s the structure was in urgent need of a thorough renovation, which would take two years. The aluminum cladding of the spheres was replaced by stainless steel plates with integrated LED lighting and the interior was adapted to contemporary requirements. Today the monument shines again and at dark you can see the flashing fairytale lighting from afar. Image size: 260 x 360mm