Climatron - St. Louis, Missouri
Posted by: 
BruceS
N 38° 36.844 W 090° 15.508
15S E 738698 N 4277516
At the time of its opening in 1960 the Climatron at the Missouri Botanical Garden was the world's first geodesic dome greenhouse.
Waymark Code: WM1ZA0
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 08/08/2007
Views: 106
The geodesic dome was patented by Buckminster Fuller in 1954. A geodesic dome is
a hemisphere made up of a network of lightweight but strong triangles to
perfectly distribute stress, thus requiring no interior supports and allowing
maximum space and light for the plants.
In 1961, architects Murphy and Mackey won the Reynolds Award, a prize for
architectural excellence in a structure using aluminum. In 1976, the Climatron
was named one of the 100 most significant architectural achievements in United
States history.
Climatron Facts:
Built: 1960
Restored: 1990
Building materials: concrete, aluminum, and Plexiglas (now Saflex)
Architects: Murphy and Mackey
Construction costs in 1960: $776,000
Restoration costs in 1990: $6 million
Height: 70 feet (21 meters)
Diameter: 175 feet (53 meters)
Volume: 1.3 million cubic feet
Ground surface: 24,000 square feet (more than 1/2 acre)
Panels making up the dome: 2,425
Daytime temperature: 85 degrees F (29 degrees C)
Nighttime temperature: 64 degrees F(18 degrees C)
Average humidity: 86 percent
Plants inside: over 1,200 species
The
Climatron's website