Can the Statue of Liberty withstand a hurricane?

Although Lady Liberty wasn't hurt in the storm — give credit to Gustave Eiffel for the skeletal design that can withstand hurricane-force winds — Sandy's tidal surge destroyed the docks, the energy infrastructure and tore up sections of the walkways. Nearly three-quarters of the island was underwater.



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Lady Liberty is struck by lightning 600 times every year Standing proud, exposed to the elements, the statue has to withstand around 600 lightning bolts every year and, in high winds, the torch can sway by about 5 inches side-to-side!

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The truss in statue's right shoulder had seriously weakened and was in danger of collapse. And almost half of the iron armature that supports the copper skin had corroded, in part because the statue had become, in effect, a giant battery.

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The Statue of Liberty is just one of the iconic landmarks in New York City. It's made of copper, which has oxidised naturally to form a green patina coating which actually protects the copper underneath. It took about 20 years for the Statue of Liberty to change from copper coloured to green!

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A trip up to the crown includes walking up a double-helix spiral staircase. The Statue's Crown can only be accessed by climbing 162 stairs. There is no elevator service to the Crown. The climb is strenuous.

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July 30, 1916 Dynamite and explosives set for the British and French war effort were detonated. That statue suffered some minor damage (mostly to the right arm and torch) and closed for ten days. For public safety reasons, the torch balcony has been closed ever since.

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That patina shields the statue from the extreme elements of New York Harbor, like high winds, salt water and air pollution. Cleaning the green patina from the Statue of Liberty could do more harm than good, according to National Park Service spokesman Jerry Willis in a statement to AM New York.

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At the Statue's unveiling, in 1886, it was brown, like a penny. By 1906, oxidation had covered it with a green patina. The thin layer of oxidation that covers copper (and bronze, an alloy made mostly of copper) can preserve the metal for centuries, even millennia, as shown by objects from the ancient world.

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While Egypt rejected the idea as too costly, Bartholdi's initial vision of an “Arab peasant” evolved into one of a “colossal goddess” that he'd later apply to his Statue of Liberty design ( here ).

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There are 25 windows in the crown which symbolize 25 gemstones found on the earth. The seven rays of the Statue's crown represent the seven seas and continents of the world. The tablet which the Statue holds in her left hand reads (in Roman numerals) “July (IV) 4th, (MDCCLXXVI) 1776.”

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Originally, the sculptor planned to place the chains in the Statue's left hand, which instead became the position of her tablet. Bartholdi opted to place the chains and shackles at the feet of Lady Liberty to symbolize Liberty breaking free from bondage.

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Statue of Liberty - a room inside the flame Yes, you read that right! There is a secret room here, which you unfortunately can't access. In 1916, the room in the torch had to be closed after an explosion (which was an act of sabotage committed by German agents during World War I).

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Visiting the crown of the Statue of Liberty is a rewarding activity. Due to its extreme popularity, tickets to the crown must be reserved prior to visiting. There are a limited number of crown tickets per day.

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