For many American families, Veteran’s Day is a meaningful day dedicated to reflection and appreciation.
While Americans enjoy plenty of individual privileges and freedoms, the society we have today came as a result of lots of sacrifice and struggle. Much of that sacrifice was borne by soldiers and other members of the armed forces who put their lives in jeopardy for others. Although we all are asked to be respectful and observe the holiday, it is especially meaningful to those with family members who are veterans or in active service.
Though we all observe the day differently, one monument in Anthem, Arizona has a particularly unique tribute.
Anthem is home to the Anthem Veterans Memorial, a public monument dedicated to American veterans.
Upon first glance, the monument is merely a series of domino-like pillars of descending size, each with a round hole carved through it to let the light in. The holes in the pillars are designed to let the light through, allowing a bright beam to shine down through all five parts (each one representing one branch of the military). Beneath the light is a mosaic of the Great Seal of the United States.
What you might not notice, however, is the monument’s ingenious design which is only “complete” on one day.
As a special tribute to Veteran’s Day, architects designed the monument to illuminate the seal in a unique way.
By studying years of statistical data and making careful measurements, the team behind the monument made it so that the Great Seal was only fully illuminated by the sun at 11:11am on Veteran’s day, November 11th. Though the design of the monument was complex, the chief engineer Jim Martin explained the team’s process:
“Using the statistical mean of the 100-year data, the altitude and azimuth angles for the structure were adjusted to provide time/error fluctuation of plus or minus 12 time seconds from the International Atomic Time mark of 11:11:11 a.m.”
The painstaking accuracy of the monument is, in itself, another tribute to the exacting philosophies of the military.
Among Veteran’s Day memorials, this one is particularly cool.
With all the research the team completed, the monument’s design should allow this phenomenon to keep happening every year—at least, for another 500 years out (assuming it is still standing).
What do you think about this architectural feat? Let us know in the comments below.
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