World Trade Center 2012 9/11 Memorial and Museum
Intended to honor the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the National Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum will opens its doors to the public in 2012.
At the heart of the new Sept. 11 memorial will be the two footprints of the fallen towers, marked by two large, deeply set reflective pools, rimmed by rushing waterfalls.
The competition saw more than 5,200 applicants from 63 countries, but it was Michael Arad and Peter Walker were selected to turn their initial proposals into reality. From a plaza with some 400 trees and an entrance pavilion -- conceptualized by the Norwegian design firm Snøhetta -- visitors will be able to descend through several exhibit levels to the foundations of the former twin towers.
Computer generated, birds eye view of the reflecting pools: The waterfalls will be the largest ever created by human hands in the United States.
Ten meters (32.8 feet) underground, visitors will be able to read the names of attack victims, engraved into massive stones along the reflecting pools edges. The pools, and names, symbolize the voids the victims left behind.
Graphic depiction of an exhibit room: Some parts of the memorial museum will remember and honor the many workers who were tasked with cleaning up after the attacks.
In this exhibition hall, an original metal beam from the twin towers will be on display.
