7 - Interesting to Know -
New Year Crystal Ball in New York on 2007 New Year's Eve

The New Year's Eve ball in New York's Times Square has celebrated its 100th birthday by going green, after being revamped with energy-efficient lights in 2007. The ball is still a Waterford crystal ball, but the new LED fixture emits 16.7 m colors instead of halogen bulbs.

The new 6ft (1.8m) ball, weighing about 1,100 lbs (500 kg), was covered with 9,576 light-emitting diodes that used the same amount of electricity as 10 toasters. The LEDs were more than twice as bright as the previous bulbs and were capable to create 16m colors. The LEDs on the $1.1m (£550,000) New Year's Eve Ball was able to create a kaleidoscope of colors and patterns on each of its 672 crystal triangular panels. As well as being smaller and more energy efficient, the 9,576 lights will substantially increase the brightness to more than 625,000 lumens. This technology was used Philips Lighting. Its flag pole is 77-foot (23.5m) tall and the ball descends over the course of one minute, coming to a rest at the bottom of the pole at 12.00 am. The electronic screen below the ball counts down to midnight as well.

The Times Square Alliance, the business group running the event, handed out thousands of balloons and mittens to the crowd, which waited for hours in chilly winter weather for the main event. The confetti included pieces of paper with the new year's wishes and resolutions of people who submitted them in advance

After the ball had descended, three tons of confetti poured down on the revelers in a blizzard that was almost blinding. 8,000 police officers dressed in riot gear patrolled the area around Times Square, randomly searching people as they arrived at the Square. Thousands more were on duty across the rest of New York. Police helicopters circled overhead, all police leave was cancelled, and a detailed rapid response plan was in place ready to swing into action in the event of any kind of incident.

History of the Ball

The first time ball of the world was installed in England for visually synchronizing the chronometers used in navigation in 1829.

But in the USA, the first New Year's Eve celebration was held by New York Times owner Adolph Ochs, who was building a new headquarters in the neighborhood in the area, in 1904, just by using fireworks. It became so popular that it permanently displaced the celebrations in Trinity Church. Three years later, when the city banned fireworks, Ochs brought in the iron and wooden ball, to be lowered from the building's flagpole at midnight.

(1) Originally, made of wood and iron, the ball was 5 ft in diameter and lit with 100 25W incandescent bulbs in 1907 in One Time Square, New York. At that time it weighed 700 lbs (318 kg).

(2) It weight was reduced to 400 lbs (181 kg) in 1920.

(3) Its weight was further reduced to 150 lbs (68 kg) in 1955

(4) The ball gets computerized, aluminum coated, rhinestoned, and had strobe light system in 1995.

(6) In 1996, an aluminium ball is replaced.

(7) During 200-2007, the ball gets an overhaul with a design from Waterford Crystal and new technology, It weighed 1070 lbs (485 kg), 6 ft in diameter, and installed with 504 crystal triangles, illuminated externally with 168 halogen light bulbs, and internally with 432 light bulbs for clear, red, blue, green and yellow colors. There are strobe lights and mirrors to create a burst of excitement and special effects for the audience.

 (8) A 5th version of the ball, made from crystal, was created for the Millennium celebration on New Year's Eve in 2000.

[Jan 1, 2008]