World's Tallest Structure

• Fireworks light up the Burj Khalifa during the official opening ceremony.
  
  
  

  Kamran Jebreili, AP

• Dubai's Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum opened the world's tallest tower and renamed it the Burj Khalifa after the ruler of neighboring Abu Dhabi, the oil-rich sheikdom that came to its rescue during the financial meltdown.
  
  
  

  Kamran Jebreili, AP

• The Burj Khalifa, built by US architect Adrian Smith, is the world's tallest man-made structure.
  
  
  

  Mathias Kniepeiss, Getty Images

• The foundation of the building was finished on March 28, 2005. Burj Khalifa is the tallest man-made structure in the world, surpassing the KVLY-TV Tower in North Dakota as well as Warszawa Radio Mast, the previous tallest structure ever built.
  
  
  

  Kamran Jebreili, AP

• A plane approaches Dubai's skyline. Burj Khalifa is more than 2,700 feet, or 800 meters, tall and has more than 160 stories. Its 124th floor has an observation deck that offers 360-degree views.
  
  
  

  Kamran Jebreili, AP

• A young woman looks at the Burj Khalifa, July 13, 2009. The building is home to the world's first Armani Hotel, luxury offices and residences and will ultimately be the place of residence, work and leisure for up to 12,000 people.
  
  
  

  Kamran Jebreili, AP

• The tower is illuminated at dusk on Sept. 11, 2008. It was designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, who also designed the Willis Tower in Chicago and one World Trade Center in New York City.
  
  
  

  Brennan Linsley, AP

• American golfer Michelle Wie poses on the observation deck on Dec. 8, 2009. The building resembles the bundled tube form of Chicago's Willis Tower.
  
  
  

  David Cannon, Getty Images

• The Burj Khalifa casts a long shadow onto the ground, Jan. 4, 2010. It became the world's tallest high-rise building on July 24, 2007, and the world's tallest self-supporting structure on Sept. 12, 2007.
  
  
  

  Kamran Jebreili, AP

• A group of racing camels practice with the Burj Khalifa seen in the background, Jan. 16, 2007.
  
  
  

  Kamran Jebreili, AP