Tallest Building

The world's tallest residential skyscraper, which overlooks New York City's Central Park, has reached its maximum height of 1,550 ft.

In the first in our new "State of the Game" series of videos celebrating the current peaks of human achievement we take a look at the world's tallest buildings, both now and in five years' time.

Positioned toward the top of the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, New York's One World Observatory should offer visitors an amazing view of New York City. It's set to open to the general public on May 29 and will cost US$32 per ticket for adults.

Californian architecture firm Morphosis (headed by Pritzker Architecture Prize winner Thom Mayne), recently released plans for a skyscraper in Vals, Switzerland that would be the tallest building in Europe. So why is it based in a sleepy Alpine village?

In June 2015, Dubai-based Middle East Development plans to begin work on a new skyscraper that will be the tallest in Africa. Based in Casablanca, Morocco, the mixed-use tower will rise to a height of 540 m (1,771 ft), easily dwarfing all other buildings on the continent.

The Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai is already the tallest building in the world. Now, it also boasts the record for having the highest observation deck of any building. At The Top Sky opened to the public in October and is situated up on the 148th floor of the building.

Skidmore Owings and Merril (SOM) has been given the nod to produce what will be Scandinavia's tallest building. The Polstjärnan (or Pole Star) skyscraper is due for completion in 2019.

Five architects have been shortlisted to design Scandinavia's tallest building. The Karlavagnstornet skyscraper is to be built in Gothenberg, Sweden, with current design brief giving it an eventual minimum height of 202 m (663 ft). The winning design will be announced on June 17.

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat has declared that New York's still-unfinished One World Trade Center is the tallest building in the USA, and for that matter, the western hemisphere.

Within mere days of the announcement that ground had been broken on China's super-tall Sky City skyscraper, local media is reporting that workers have downed tools.

A photographer recently composed a stunning 360-degree panorama image taken from on top of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the tallest building on Earth.

Chinese construction company Broad Group has announced ambitious plans to construct the world's tallest skyscraper in an implausibly swift 90 days.