A Ferris Wheel is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, capsules, gondolas, or pods) attached to the rim in such a way that as the wheel turns, they are kept upright, usually by gravity. Some of the largest modern Ferris Wheels have cars mounted on the outside of the rim, with electric motors to independently rotate each car to keep it upright.
These wheels are sometimes referred to as observation wheels and their cars referred to as capsules. However, these alternative names are also used for wheels with conventional gravity-oriented cars. The original Ferris Wheels was designed and constructed by George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. as a landmark for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
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Orlando Eye
Facts
Height - 129.54m
Opened - 2015
Country - USA
Location - Orlando; Florida
Number of Cabins - 30
Passengers per Cabin - 15
Seating capacity - 480
Hourly capacity - 1309
Ride duration (minutes) - 22
Climate controlled - Yes
Construction cost - $90 million USD
The Orlando Eye is a giant Ferris Wheel in Orlando, Florida, US. It carried its first passenger on April 29, 2015. It is described by its operator Merlin Entertainments as an observation wheel, because “this is a stabilised-driven (capsule) that gives you a really smooth experience on the way around, so it doesn’t feel like when you’re at 400-feet, that you’re swinging around in mid-air.” According to its official website, the Orlando Eye is the first wheel ever to use such a system in combination with a suspended ‘ski lift capsule design’.
The wheel was reported to be in the early stages of planning in March 2011, with completion due in the summer of 2014 and was approved by county commissioners in September 2012. It was initially reported to be both 130 m and 137 m tall, however this was subsequently revised to approximately 122 m.
Installation of the 30 air-conditioned passenger capsules, each of which can carry up to 15 persons, began in mid-January 2015, and the last capsule was installed on February 5, 2015. In mid-February, it was announced that the soft opening was scheduled for May 1, followed by a grand opening ceremony on May 4.
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Changsha FerrisWheel
Facts
Height - 120m (394ft)
Diameter - 99m
Opened - 10/1/2004
Country - China
Location - Changsha; Hunan
Number of Cabins - 48
Passengers per Cabin - 8
Seating capacity - 384
Hourly capacity - 1152
Ride duration (minutes) - 20
Climate controlled – Yes
Changsha Ferris Wheel is a 120-metre tall giant Ferris wheel in Changsha, Hunan, China. It is adjacent to Helong Stadium. It was completed on September 30, 2004 and officially opened to the public on October 1, 2004.
It has a diameter of 99 metres.
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Tianjin Eye
Facts
Height - 120m
Diameter - 110m
Opened - 4/5/2009
Country - China
Location - Yongle Bridge; Tianjin
Number of Cabins - 48
Passengers per Cabin - 8
Seating capacity - 384
Hourly capacity - 768
Ride duration (minutes) - 30
Climate controlled – Yes
Tianjin Eye, also called as The Tientsin Eye, is a 120-metre (394 ft) tall giant Ferris Wheel built above the Yongle Bridge (formerly Chihai Bridge), over the Hai River in Tianjin, China. Construction started in 2007, with completion of the main body on December 18, 2007 and the wheel opened to the public on April 7, 2008. At the time of its completion, only the 135 m (443 ft) London Eye, 160 m (525 ft) Star of Nanchang and 165 m (541 ft) Singapore Flyer were taller.
Tianjin Eye is electrically powered and has 48 passenger capsules, each able to carry 8 passengers and takes 30 minutes to complete a rotation, giving a maximum capacity of 768 passengers per hour.
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Sky Dream Fukuoka
Facts
Height - 120m
Diameter - 110m
Opened - 2001
Country - Japan
Location - Evergreen Marinoa; Fukuoka
Ride duration (minutes) – 20
Climate controlled – Yes
The Sky Dream Fukuoka was a Ferris Wheel which operated at Evergreen Marinoa in the city of Fukuoka, Japan, from 2001 until September 2009. It stood 120 metres tall, making it the tallest Ferris wheel in Japan during its years of operation, and the tallest Ferris Wheel ever built in Japan. The gondolas were all air conditioned and accessible for wheelchair-users. One revolution took approximately 20 minutes. Sky Dream Fukuoka closed from September 26, 2009. It was subsequently sold to a Taiwanese company for rebuilding at Lihpao Land in Taiwan. Dismantling work commenced in 2010, although work was disrupted in July 2011 when supports failed, causing two cranes involved in dismantling to topple over, injuring one workman and damaging four cars.
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Cosmo Clock 21
Facts
Height - 112.5m
Diameter - 100m
Opened - 3/18/1999
Country - Japan
Location - Minato Mirai 21; Yokohama
Number of Cabins - 60
Passengers per Cabin - 8
Seating Capacity - 480
Hourly Capacity - 1920
Ride Duration (minutes) – 15
Cosmo Clock 21 is a giant Ferris Wheel at the Cosmo World amusement park in the Minato Mirai 21 district of Yokohama, Japan.
When it first opened, it was the world’s tallest Ferris wheel, until the completion of the 112.5-metre Tempozan Ferris Wheel in Osaka, Japan, in 1997.