World Top 10 Largest Aquarium

Have you ever visited the large aquarium that is bigger that your home's aquarium with any kind of fishes?


Now I would like to share all of you about the top 10 largest aquarium in the world with some brief information.
    
In order to compare these large aquariums we have looked at the size of their biggest tank (in gallons). Most aquariums have several tanks and the combined volume of water can be much larger but it is only the largest aquarium tank that is counted. So here’s a list of the largest aquariums in the world.


10. Aquarium of Western Australia (0,8 million gallons)

This aquarium opened on 13 April 1988 as Underwater World, Perth. It was acquired by the current owners, Coral World International and Morris Kahn, in 1991, and changed its name to Aquarium of Western Australia (AQWA) on 1 January 2001. It located in a coastal suburb of Perth. The aquarium’s main tank is 40 meters (130 ft) long and 20 meters (66 ft) wide and holds 3,000,000 liters (793,000 gallons) of seawater. It incorporates a 98 meter (322 ft) underwater tunnel. For a fee, snorkelers and divers can get even closer to the fish, sharks, and rays by joining the aquarium’s dive master in exploring the main tank.

9. Aquarium of Genoa (< 1 million gallons)

The aquarium was originally built for Genoa Expo '92, in Italy is one of the largest aquariums in Europe, celebrating 500 years since the Genoan sailor Christopher Columbus discovered the new world. The aquarium’s 70 tanks reproduce marine and terrestrial habitats from throughout the world and provide a home for more than 6000 animals. Some tanks reproduce natural environments from different areas as the Mediterranean, the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. The most spectacular ones are those housing the sharks, the dolphins and the seals.



8. Shanghai Ocean Aquarium (< 1 million gallons)

The Shanghai Ocean Aquarium, which located in Shanghai, China, is one of the largest aquariums in Asia. It is home to an Oranda goldfish named Bruce which measures 17.129 in. (43.507 cm) from snout to tail fin! Bruce was named after Bruce Lee. This aquarium is composed of 9 exhibition zones of all over the world, including the China Zone, the Antarctic Zone and the Australia Zone. The China Zone is home to several endangered Chinese aquatic species, including rare and precious species from the Yangtze River. The biggest attraction of the aquarium is the underwater tunnel. At 155 meter (509 ft) it is the longest underwater tunnel in the world.

7. uShaka Marine World (< 1 million gallons) 

uShaka Marine World is a theme park located in Durban, South Africa. The park was opened on 30 April 2004 after 3 years of development. In 2005, the park was awarded for "Outstanding Achievement in thematic creative design" by the Themed Entertainment Association. It contains the largest aquarium in Africa boasting 32 tanks. The sea creatures found in the aquarium range from small sea horses all the way through to sharks and dolphins. The Aquarium is built to look like an old wreck and contains a number of restaurants and cafes. The most notable of these restaurants is “The Cargo Hold” restaurant which contains a full wall sized aquarium containing a number of sharks which are visible from most of the dining area.



6. Monterey Bay Aquarium (1,2 million gallons)

The Monterey Bay Aquarium is located on the site of a former sardine cannery on Cannery Row in Monterey, California. Among the aquarium’s numerous exhibits are two gigantic tanks. The centerpiece of the Ocean’s Edge Wing is a 10 meter (33 foot) high 1,3 million liter (0,33 million gallon) tank for viewing California coastal marine life. The other one is a 4,5 million liter (1,2 million gallon) tank in the Outer Bay Wing which features one of the world’s largest single-paned windows. Sealife on exhibit includes stingrays, jellyfish, sea otters, and numerous other native marine species, which can be viewed above and below the waterline.

5. Turkuazoo (1,32 million gallons) 

Opened in 2009, Turkuazoo is Turkey’s first giant aquarium featuring a rainforest, flooded forest and tropical seas zones. The aquarium is located inside the Forum Istanbul Shopping Mall and contains a 80 meter long underwater tunnel. Turkuazoo holds about 10,000 sea creatures including tiger sharks, giant stingrays and piranhas in 29 different exhibits where the largest holds 5 million liters (1,32 million gallons) of water. In addition to being a major tourist attraction for Istanbul, the aquarium is a centre for marine research and conservation.


4. L'Oceanogràfic (1,85 million gallons)

L’Oceanogràfic is a marine complex where different marine habitats are represented. It is integrated inside a complex known as the City of Arts and Sciences inside the city of Valencia, Spain. It was designed by the architect Felix Candela and the structural engineers Alberto Domingo and Carlos Lazaro. It is integrated inside the cultural complex known as the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències. The Oceanogràfic features the largest aquarium tank in Europe and houses more than 45,000 marine creatures. They populate nine under water towers, structured on two levels that represent several marine ecosystems. Two underwater towers are joined by a 35 meter underwater tunnel and it’s tank is filled with sharks, rays and 7 million liters (1,85 million gallon) of water.


3. Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium (1,98 million gallons)

The Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium is located within the Ocean Expo Park in Japan and was opened in 2002. . It welcomed its 20 millionth visitor on 30 March 2010 and is a member of the Japanese Association of Zoos and Aquariums (JAZA). The main tank of the aquarium, called the Kuroshio Sea, holds 7,5 million liters (1,981,000 gallons) of water and features an acrylic glass panel measuring 8.2 by 22.5 meters (27 by 74 feet) with a thickness of 60 centimeters (24 inches), the largest such panel in the world when the aquarium was opened. Whale sharks and manta rays are kept alongside many other fish species in Kuroshio Sea. As of July 2010, there have been a total of four manta rays born in the aquarium.


2. Dubai Mall Aquarium (2,64 million gallons)

The Dubai Mall, one the world’s largest shopping malls in the world, is part of the 20-billion-dollar Burj Dubai complex. The centerpiece of the mall is the gigantic aquarium tank, with the capacity to hold 10 million liters (2,64 million gallons) of water. The aquarium has more than 33,000 living animals including over 400 sharks and rays combined. It officially earned the Guinness World Record for the world’s “Largest Acrylic Panel”. The panel measures 8.3 by 32.88 meter (27 by 108 feet) and is 75 centimeters (30 inches) thick beating Japan’s Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium to the punch. In February 2010, the shark filled tank sprang a leak causing an evacuation and brief shutdown of the mall.

1. Georgia Aquarium (6,3 million gallons)

The Georgia Aquarium, located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, at Pemberton Place, is the world's largest aquarium housing more than 100,000 sea creatures. Funded mostly by a $250 million donation from Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus, the aquarium opened in November 2005. The Georgia Aquarium is the only institution outside of Asia to house whale sharks. The sharks are kept in a gigantic 24 million liter (6.3 million gallon) tank in the Ocean Voyager exhibit. There has been controversy surrounding the decision of the Georgia Aquarium to house whale sharks. Concerns about keeping the whale sharks in captivity were heightened by the deaths of two of the whale sharks originally obtained.

Happy Chinese New Year

Happy Chinese New Year! A year of Dragon

"Chinese New Year is the biggest and longest festival of the Chinese community. Chinese New Year begins on 23rd Jan, 2012.


 In China, people take weeks of holidays so as to prepare for the festival and go on holidays. There are several beautiful rituals which are followed during this whole period. There goes a very beautiful legend behind Chinese New Year celebrations. In the ancient times, Buddha asked all the animals to meet him on the Chinese New Year.Twelve animals came and Buddha named a year after each one and he announced that the people who'd be born in the respective months would have similar personality traits like that animal. As 2012 is the year of dragon, so people born in 2012 would be brave, innovative, passionate, leaders.

City Hall

This is a City Hall project that I got from A7corp.

They did not provide a clear info about this project yet so I just have some some photos to share.

Project

City Hall

Client

Overseas Cambodia Investment Corporation

Location

Diamond Island,Phnom Penh,Cambodia

Project Objective

The part of Diamond Island for wedding Ceremony function,3 Stories ,Gross building area 10,000Sq.m.,parking 101 cars

Royal Tower Project

Royal Tower Project

Name : Royal Tower
Developer: Joint venture project between the Royal Group and Amarapura
Location : Corner of Monivong Boulevard and Confederation de la Russie (opposite OCIC Tower, previous known as the Traffic Police site)
Land Area : 4036 sq m 
Retail Spaces : 4800 sq m (B1, L1, L2 and L6)
Unit Size : Studio - 47.3 sq m, 1 bedroom - 94.5 sq m, 2 bedroom - 123.5 sq m, 3 bedroom - 218 sq m or 263.8 sq m 
Number of Floors : 36 (17 floors of office spaces + 13 floors of residential spaces - Office Level 7-23, Residences Level 24-34, Penthouses Level 35-36 plus roof)
Number of Parking Spaces : 270 (B1, L3, L4 and L5)
Project Cost : total investment of US $91 million
Expected Construction Start : 2010
Expected Completion Date : 2012 or 2013
Description : The building is planned to offer first class international standard office space in two efficient rectangular wings arranged in an elegant ‘A’ configuration around a central elevator core. The two penthouse apartments will be made available for sale - either individually or en-bloc, with private roof decks and swimming pools. Part of the retail podium is available for retail banking activities - with secure basement loading and vault areas.
Facilities: Club floor level with restaurant, spa, meeting facilitie and landscaped pool deck.


Here are some more photos about this project.

Vann Molyvann: Cambodia’s forgotten architect

"Vann Molyvann: Cambodia’s forgotten architect" is original article of Los Angeles Times on 14-Nov-2010. I would like to re-post it because you may not yet read it. 

In the 1960s, he redefined the look of his homeland architecturally. Now his works are being lost to redevelopment. Admirers are working to highlight his importance.

Reporting from Sihanoukville, Cambodia — —

Architect Bill Greaves stood on a bluff outside the city and admired an elegant white and peach building perched high above the beaches and guesthouses that have made this seaside spot into a tourist boomtown. Inspired by the dong raik, a pole used by rural Cambodians to carry loads on their shoulders, the building seemed to float in the air, its concrete and brick second floor held aloft by a complex web of hidden beams.

“It’s a gem, but it’s not very well known,” Greaves said of the SKD Brewery offices, built in 1968 byCambodia’s most gifted and visionary architect, Vann Molyvann.

In the 1960s, under the iron-fisted patronage of Prince Norodom Sihanouk, Vann Molyvann helped transform Cambodia from a sleepy former French colony into one of the most architecturally arresting countries in Asia. But after surviving decades of civil war and the terror of Khmer Rouge rule, the architect’s buildings are being demolished as Cambodia seeks to rebuild.

Although Vann Molyvann, 83, is back in Phnom Penh after years of living overseas, there is little he can do to prevent his work from disappearing. In 2008, two of his greatest works, the National Theater and the Council of Ministers building, were demolished. In 2001, the government sold his Olympic Stadium to a Taiwanese developer, who altered the complex’s drainage system to the point that it floods frequently.

In response, admirers such as Greaves, art historian Darryl Collins, who cowrote the only book in English about 1950s and 1960s Cambodian architecture, and architect Geoff Pyle, who founded an organization that offers guided tours of Phnom Penh’s notable buildings, are working to highlight Vann Molyvann’s importance. He remains virtually unknown in Cambodia, where he is not taught in the country’s high schools and universities, and his international profile is low.

Greaves had traveled from his base in Phnom Penh to the brewery in Sihanoukville with a team of volunteers working with the Vann Molyvann Project, an organization he established in 2009 to document the architect’s buildings. Nearly all of Vann Molyvann’s blueprints were lost during Cambodia’s years of turmoil, so Greaves and his volunteers are re-creating them from scratch to leave a record for future generations.

As the sun burned off the morning mist and lipstick-red trucks roared by full of Angkor beer — the SKD complex remains a functioning brewery — Cambodian and American volunteers in their 20s moved methodically through the space, hand measuring doorways, columns and anything else they could get their tape measurers on. They would spend the better part of three days sizing up the building before heading back to Phnom Penh, where they were creating scale models and drawings for the first major exhibition of Vann Molyvann’s work, which opened in Phnom Penh in late September.

Greaves first encountered Vann Molyvann’s buildings when he was visiting as a tourist in 2004. “I was astonished. I didn’t know anything about architecture in Cambodia in the 1960s,” he said. He was struck by the architect’s daring use of concrete to create massive, expressive forms, “the kinds of things you could never convince a structural engineer to do nowadays,” he said.

The buildings ingeniously used what might now be called green technology, including ventilation, natural lighting and drainage systems, to mitigate Cambodia’s harsh climate, which alternates between periods of torrential rain and extreme heat. The buildings also referenced objects from Cambodian culture, such as mystical Buddhist serpents called nagas and the straw hats worn by peasants working in the fields.

After returning to Cambodia several times, Greaves quit his job at Steven Harris Architects in New York and moved to Phnom Penh to found the Vann Molyvann Project, which has consulted extensively with the Cambodian architect in its work. “I am extremely grateful for what they are doing,” Vann Molyvann said of his foreign admirers.

Vann Molyvann’s life has been shaped by the twists and turns of his country’s tumultuous history. Born in 1926, he attended Cambodia’s only high school during World War II. However, his studies were interrupted by Japan’s takeover of the country during the war, but he managed to graduate and in 1945 won one of two scholarships that year for Cambodians to study in France.

At the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, he received architectural training from disciples of Le Corbusier, who taught him the influential French architect’s “Le Modulor,” a system of proportion that Vann Molyvann later used as the basis for his designs. He thought little about his home country and “drowned in French culture completely,” he said. Meanwhile, his compatriots in Paris at the time, including a young Pol Pot, soaked up the Marxism and Stalinism that would form the ideological basis of the Khmer Rouge.

Vann Molyvann returned to Phnom Penh in 1956, and he was one of a few architects in Cambodia with formal training. Cambodia had gained independence from France in 1953, but it remained a poor, rural country with no recent history of cities or urban planning. “Architecture was a strange concept in Cambodia. They did not know what it was,” he said. He opened a firm but found little private work.

His fortunes changed when Norodom Sihanouk appointed him chief architect for state buildings and director for urban planning and habitat. With access to government commissions, he could begin designing civic buildings that combined the Modernist and Brutalist sensibilities he had learned in Paris with Cambodia’s traditions and way of life.

Over the next decade and a half, Vann Molyvann built dozens of buildings in Phnom Penh and elsewhere in Cambodia. His crowning achievement was the Olympic Stadium, a sprawling sports complex that was built in advance of the Southeast Asian Games of 1963, which were never held. With a water-management system inspired by the moats and channels of ancient Angkor and soaring concrete overhangs, the design helped usher in a period of architectural and cultural creativity. He was in his early 30s at the time. “Imagine having the possibility to build such a thing when you are that age,” Vann Molyvann said, his eyes twinkling.

Norodom Sihanouk viewed architecture as a way of expressing the aspirations for progress and modernity of the newly independent Cambodian people. He poured significant portions of the national budget into construction projects, and he deftly exploited Cambodia’s Cold War neutrality to land aid from both the Americans and the Soviets.

“Sihanouk was extremely open to the outside world,” Vann Molyvann said. “Cambodians had enormous enthusiasm to build the country, and fortunately for us, Prince Sihanouk shared this feeling.”

Norodom Sihanouk’s showpiece was the Russian Boulevard, which connected central Phnom Penh to its international airport. Lined with many of Vann Molyvann’s most significant buildings, including the Teachers’ Training College and the Council of Ministers building, the road was designed to impress visiting dignitaries.

But Norodom Sihanouk could not keep his country neutral forever. With the Vietnam War spilling over into Cambodia, Vann Molyvann left with his family in 1972, and the prince’s cosmopolitanism eventually gave way to the savage xenophobia of the Khmer Rouge. Vann Molyvann spent the next two decades as a consultant with the United Nations at various posts around the world.

He moved back to Cambodia in 1993, but his second return has proved more difficult than the first. Although he was appointed head of the organization that managed the site of the Angkor temples, the current government of Prime Minister Hun Sen removed him from that post after he publicly complained about government corruption. “I felt that entrance fees for Angkor should go to the people, not to civil servants in Phnom Penh. They said, ‘Get out, Molyvann,’” he said.

Out of favor with the government, Vann Molyvann has watched the urban landscape in Phnom Penh transform. Norodom Sihanouk’s Russian Boulevard, that bellwether of Cambodia’s aspirations, now swarms with trucks and motorbikes carrying goods and migrants into the city, and it is lined with the glass-and-steel office buildings and cookie-cutter housing developments of Cambodia’s recent economic boom. The new Chinese-designed and funded Council of Ministers building, which replaced Vann Molyvann’s, features a pyramid framed by what resembles an enormous drawbridge. It would not look out of place in a Chinese provincial capital.

“There’s a very strong notion in Cambodia that a modern city should be like Shanghai or Bangkok, where the emphasis is on verticality,” said Greaves of the Vann Molyvann Project. “Late Modern architecture is a little harder for the general public to love.”

While the efforts of Greaves and others have raised Vann Molyvann’s profile among Cambodians, the fate of his buildings ultimately rests with the current government, which came to power in 1979 after defeating the Khmer Rouge. “The government doesn’t want to leave anything from before 1979, because it wasn’t their achievement. History is completely manipulated,” Vann Molyvann said.

Today, he has an official government title, but it is essentially an honorific. He is working on translating his PhD dissertation, about urbanization in Southeast Asia, into Khmer, the Cambodian language.

Beng Khemro, deputy director general of the country’s Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, said the government is doing everything it can to preserve Cambodia’s architectural heritage. “But economic development and modernization inevitably bring about changes in every country, and Cambodia is no exception,” he said.

Young Cambodians like Yin Sotheara, a 21-year-old architecture student and volunteer with the Vann Molyvann Project, hope to play a role in that development. Back at the SKD Brewery offices, he took a break from measuring a rear-facing balcony to discuss his future after graduation.

“There are not many opportunities for Cambodian architects. Most of the new buildings are being built by Chinese and Koreans,” he said. But learning about Vann Molyvann had for the first time provided him with a Cambodian architectural role model. “Vann Molyvann showed that you can take foreign concepts and mix them with Cambodian traditions to make new buildings,” he said. “I want to make buildings that are suited to the Cambodian way of life.”

Here are some photos of Mr.Vann Mollyvann buildings: