Top 10: Crazy Construction Projects

Architects and engineers are artists in their own way; they are constantly pushing the limits of construction, defying the odds and laws of gravity in order to create structures that serve more than just a functional purpose.

These structures become landmarks and statements of accomplishment to the world. From the pyramids of Egypt to the Empire State Building, this race to reach the heavens has been going on for centuries and continues today.

This instalment of the Top 10 features all sorts of construction projects not just skyscrapers that are either in the process of being completed or for which the plans have been finalized.

Check out what the future holds for these impressive, colossal and often record-breaking projects.

Note: All amounts of money are in U.S. dollars.

Number 10

The Big Dig - Boston, Massachusetts One of the most aggressive and intensive urban projects in North America, the Big Dig set out to remedy Boston's infamous congestion problem. The six-lane Central Artery highway had carried commuters since the 1950s, but when traffic became jammed for 10 hours a day in the '80s, city and state governments decided to completely overhaul the downtown infrastructure.

The project built two bridges, a tunnel and, most amazingly of all, it destroyed the Central Artery and built an even wider highway underground. Over 5,000 workers contributed to the Big Dig, laying the 7.5 miles and eight to 10 lanes of highway, pouring the 3.8 million cubic yards of concrete and displacing 16 million cubic yards of soil.

Trivia: The project created more than 300 acres of new parks and open areas in the Boston region.

Number 9

Queen Mary 2 The largest passenger ship ever built, the QM2 is basically a floating city. Replete with a casino, a nightclub, a spa, a wine bar, 15 restaurants and bars, a library, and even a planetarium - this ship makes the Titanic look like a kayak. The liner, which can carry more than 2,620 passengers, took almost a year and a half to build and made its maiden voyage on January 12, 2004.

A huge ship to say the least, QM2 weighs 151,400 gross tons, generates 157,000 horsepower and cost an astounding $800 million to construct. Those interested in taking a vacation on this hulk should expect to shell out at least $1,499 for a six-day transatlantic trip.

Trivia: At 1,132 feet, the Queen Mary 2 is more than twice as long as the Washington Monument is tall, and is 147 feet longer than the Eiffel Tower.

Number 8

Beijing Airport - Beijing, China Part of Beijing's massive infrastructure overhaul for the 2008 Olympics includes the construction of what is to be the world's biggest airport. Englishman Sir Norman Foster, who designed current world-record holder Hong Kong International Airport, submitted plans for this new gateway to China's capital in late 2003, and plans continued to develop throughout 2004.

The Chinese government has toyed with the idea of scaling back the grandiose project, which is set to take three years to complete, in an effort to quell its image as a showboat. But if Lord Foster has anything to say about it, this $2 billion airport will be a real humdinger.

Trivia: The proposed roof of the airport covers an amazing 80 acres.

Number 7

Millau Viaduct - Millau, France The same man behind the construction of Beijing's new airport put his mark on France as well, designing what is now the world's tallest bridge. Spanning the Tarn River in southern France, the Millau Viaduct's seven pillars burst from the gorge below.

At its highest, the bridge reaches 1,122 feet, which is 53 feet higher than the Eiffel Tower. The bridge is approximately 1.6 miles long.

The Viaduct took three and a half years to complete, is part of the A75 route that links northern Europe to the Mediterranean, and opened with much fanfare on December 14, 2004. It cost $523 million, used two billion tons of concrete and metal, and thankfully comes with a 120-year guarantee.

Trivia: The Millau Bridge is so large it can be seen from space.

Number 6

Freedom Tower - New York City After considering several bids, the New York government agreed on a compromise between two world-renowned architects' plans to rebuild the World Trade Centre site.

Daniel Libeskind and David Childs designed Freedom Tower, a 1,776-foot skyscraper whose height commemorates the year of American independence.

Beginning construction on April 27, 2006, the immense structure will have 73 stories: the first 70 will be used for office space and the top three for restaurants and an observation deck. Estimated to cost $12 billion and to be completed by 2009, Freedom Tower and its 276-foot spire will surpass Taipei Tower, currently the world's tallest building.

Trivia: A cable suspension structure supporting Freedom Tower will hold wind turbines, which will provide 20% of the building's energy needs.

Number 5

The World - Dubai, United Arab Emirates Truly a mind-boggling project, Nakheel Developments thought outside the box for its latest large-scale development in Dubai. Two and a half miles offshore from the booming Middle Eastern city is a slew of manmade islands that don't look like much yet, as construction only started in September 2003.

However, if you look down on the project from the sky when it's completed in 2008, you'll see a replica of the Earth laid out in the sea. Made of 300 islands of various sizes, the $3 billion project recreates the world map and offers business and residential buyers entire islands, which range from $6.85 million to $36 million. Malls, office buildings, mansions, and parks will adorn the islands, which will be 50 meters to 100 meters apart and will cover a total of 5.6 miles.

Trivia: Rod Stewart is apparently looking into purchasing the United Kingdom property for a cool $33.4 million.

Number 4

Hangzhou Bay Bridge - Cixi and Jiaxing, China Most bridges cross rivers and lakes; there aren't too many that cross a whole sea. Hangzhou Bay Bridge is a 22.5-mile crossing that will connect the cities of Cixi and Jiaxing, in Zhejiang province in eastern China.

Connecting previously remote cities on China's economically-prosperous east coast, the six-lane S-shaped bridge will rank as the world's longest sea-crossing span. The cost of the bridge, set to be completed in 2008, topped $1.42 billion.

Trivia: The Hangzhou Bay Bridge is so long that the contractors built a service island in the middle, where commuters can stop for food and gas.

Number 3

Burj Dubai - Dubai, United Arab Emirates As Dubai sets out to become a world-leading business hub, it is building an infrastructure beyond compare. Burj Dubai will smash records as the world's tallest structure: at 2,650 feet, it is 874 feet taller than New York's proposed Freedom Tower and 835 feet taller than Toronto's CN Tower.

Burj Dubai's 160 floors will have office space, residential apartments, hotels, and a huge shopping mall. Its unique three-sided structure serves to negate powerful winds at its near half-mile height and also represents a creative design that will dominate the Dubai landscape once it's completed in 2008, at a cost of $8 billion.

Trivia: To avoid swaying, the three-sided Burj Dubai is built around a core, which gets smaller and smaller as the building ascends.

Number 2

International Space Station (ISS) Sixteen nations contributed to the decade-long effort to create a humongous floating base above Earth, considered the biggest cooperative science project in history.

When the ISS is complete, over 80 flights will have been made to the station, each adding another important element to the incredible construction feat.

More than four times the size of Russia's Mir station, the ISS will weigh more than one million pounds, boast almost an acre of solar panels, and be 356-feet across and 290-feet long. Development, assembly and daily running costs are estimated to be more than $130 billion.

Trivia: The ISS hosted both the first space tourist Dennis Tito, who paid $20 million for the visit and the first space wedding, between astronaut Yuri Malenchenko and Ekaterina Dmitriev, who was in Texas.

Number 1

Three Gorges Dam - Sandouping, Yichang, China Try to picture a structure one and a half miles wide, 600 feet tall and capable of creating a water reservoir that is 400 miles long. China's Three Gorges Dam project is a massive, 16-year undertaking that aims to halt the Yangtze River floods, which have claimed more than a million lives in the past century.

Halting the strong waters of the world's third longest river is no easy task, which explains the estimated $24.65 billion bill which some say could end up being three times as much and the almost two-decade-long effort that began in 1993.

When completed, the dam's 26 generators are expected to create the equivalent power of 18 nuclear power plants. For six months of the year, 10,000-ton ships will be able to sail inland to the city of Chongqing, creating a huge business centre in China's Sichuan province. Trivia: The Three Gorges Dam project is expected to displace at least 1.2 million people.

Pushing the engineering envelope

Record-holders or not, these 10 structures will make their mark. They serve as boastful statements to the world, defying expectations and possibilities. For now, they are the some of the most impressive construction projects in the world, but in 10 years, there will surely be 10 even more impressive structures underway to replace them.

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