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Revision as of 02:32, 25 October 2021 editBigblackbenjamin (talk | contribs)1 editm This is big benTags: Reverted categories removed references removed← Previous edit Revision as of 01:57, 26 October 2021 edit undoGjs238 (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers146,581 edits The article title is disambiguated (Heard Island)Tag: UndoNext edit →
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{{Short description|Volcano on the Australian subantarctic territory}}
{Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the striking clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster, although the name is frequently extended to refer also to the clock and the clock tower. The official name of the tower in which Big Ben is located was originally the Clock Tower, but it was renamed Elizabeth Tower in 2012, to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom.
{{Infobox mountain
| name =
| photo = ISS018-E-038182 lrg.jpg
| photo_alt =
| photo_caption = Satellite image of the southern tip of ]. ] is seen on the left side of the image, with ] just above and ] just below. Big Ben and ] are seen at the lower right side of the image.
| elevation_m = 2745
| elevation_ref = <ref name="gnis">{{cite gnis | type = antarid | id = 1351 | name = Big Ben | accessdate = 2019-08-10}}</ref>
| prominence_m = 2745
| prominence_ref = <ref name="gnis"/>
| listing = ]<br />]
| location = ], ]
| map = Indian Ocean
| map_caption = Location of Big Ben
| map_size = 350
| label_position = right
| coordinates = {{coord|53|06|00|S|73|31|00|E|type:mountain_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| coordinates_ref = <ref name="gnis"/>
| topo = RAN Heard Island 291
| type = ]
| age = ]
| last_eruption = 2012 – ongoing <small>(as of 11 June 2019)</small><ref>{{cite web|url=https://volcano.si.edu/volcano.cfm?vn=234010&vtab=Eruptions|title=Heard|work=]|publisher=]|accessdate=2019-08-10}}</ref>
| first_ascent =
| easiest_route =
}}
], from ] ]]]


'''Big Ben''' (previously known as '''Big Ben Peak''', '''Old Ben Mountain''', '''Emperor William Peak''' and '''Kaiser Wilhelm-Berg''')<ref name="gnis"/> is a ] ] that dominates the geography of ] in the southern ]. It is a ] with a diameter of about {{convert|25|km|mi|abbr=on}}. Its highest point is ], which is {{convert|2745|m|ft|abbr=on}} ]. Much of it is covered by ice, including 14 major ]s which descend from Big Ben to the sea. Big Ben is the highest mountain in Australian Territory, except for those claimed in the ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://heardisland.antarctica.gov.au/about/frequently-asked-questions|title=Frequently asked questions|last=Division|first=c=AU;o=Commonwealth of Australia;ou=Department of the Environment;ou=Australian Antarctic|website=heardisland.antarctica.gov.au|language=en-AU|access-date=2016-05-23}}</ref> A smaller volcanic headland, the ], extends about {{convert|10|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} to the northwest, created by a separate volcano, ]; its highest point is ], at {{convert|715|m|ft|abbr=on}}.
The tower was designed by Augustus Pugin in a neo-Gothic style. When completed in 1859, its clock was the largest and most accurate four-faced striking and chiming clock in the world. The tower stands 316 feet (96 m) tall, and the climb from ground level to the belfry is 334 steps. Its base is square, measuring 40 feet (12 m) on each side. Dials of the clock are 22.5 feet (6.9 m) in diameter. All four nations of the UK are represented on the tower in shields featuring a rose for England, thistle for Scotland, shamrock for Northern Ireland, and leek for Wales. On 31 May 2009, celebrations were held to mark the tower's 150th anniversary.


==Volcanic activity==
Big Ben is the largest of the tower's five bells and weighs 13.5 long tons (13.7 tonnes; 15.1 short tons). It was the largest bell in the United Kingdom for 23 years. The origin of the bell's nickname is open to question; it may be named after Sir Benjamin Hall, who oversaw its installation, or heavyweight boxing champion Benjamin Caunt. Four quarter bells chime at 15, 30 and 45 minutes past the hour and just before Big Ben tolls on the hour. The clock uses its original Victorian mechanism, but an electric motor can be used as a backup.
Volcanic activity at the cone has been known since 1881. An ] occurred in 1993.<ref></ref> Satellite images detected eruptions during 2000. On 2 February 2016, observations from ], {{convert|15|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} northwest of Mawson Peak, showed plumes up to {{convert|1|km|ft|abbr=on}} high over the volcano. Satellite images showed hotspots at various times from 2003 to 2008, and during September 2012.<ref></ref> A further eruption was reported on 2 February 2016, and was recorded by scientists who happened to be in the area on an expedition. Big Ben does not endanger humans because Heard Island is uninhabited.<ref>{{Cite web|title = Scientists film Big Ben sub-Antarctic volcano eruption|url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-35468579|website = BBC News|access-date = 2016-02-02}}</ref>


Big Ben is in a remote location, and without regular observation it is possible that eruptions have occurred at other times.
The tower is a British cultural icon recognised all over the world. It is one of the most prominent symbols of the United Kingdom and parliamentary democracy, and it is often used in the establishing shot of films set in London. The clock tower has been part of a Grade I listed building since 1970 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.


==See also==
On 21 August 2017, a four-year schedule of renovation works began on the tower. Modifications will include adding a lift, re-glazing and repainting the clock dials, upgrading lighting and repairing roof tiles among other improvements. With a few exceptions, such as New Year's Eve and Remembrance Sunday, the bells are to be silent until the work is completed in 2022.
*]


==References==
{{Reflist}}
* {{cite book |editor-last=LeMasurier |editor-first=W. E. |editor-last2=Thomson |editor-first2=J. W. | title = Volcanoes of the Antarctic Plate and Southern Oceans | publisher = ] | year = 1990 | isbn = 0-87590-172-7 | page = 512 pp }}


==External links==
Contents
*Click to see a map of Heard Island and McDonald Islands, including all major topographical features
1 Tower
*
1.1 Origin
*Australian Government (Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities)
1.2 Design
1.3 Name
1.4 Prison Room
1.5 Ayrton Light
2 Clock
2.1 Dials
2.2 Movement
2.3 Breakdowns and other incidents
2.3.1 19th century
2.3.2 20th century
2.3.3 21st century
3 Bells
3.1 Great Bell
3.1.1 Nickname
3.2 Chimes
4 Cultural significance
5 2017 renovation
6 See also
7 References
8 Bibliography
9 External links
9.1 Videos
Tower
Origin
MENU0:00
Audio description of the tower by Gary O'Donoghue
Elizabeth Tower, originally referred to as the Clock Tower, but more popularly known as Big Ben, was raised as a part of Charles Barry's design for a new Palace of Westminster, after the old palace was largely destroyed by fire on 16 October 1834. Although Barry was the chief architect of the neo-gothic palace, he turned to Augustus Pugin for the design of the Clock Tower, which resembles earlier Pugin designs, including one for Scarisbrick Hall in Lancashire. Construction of the tower began on 28 September 1845. The building contractors were Thomas Grissell and Morton Peto. An inscribed trowel now in the Parliamentary Archives records that Emily, sister of Peto's daughter-in-law, was given the honour of laying the first stone. It was Pugin's last design before his descent into mental illness and death in 1852, and Pugin himself wrote, at the time of Barry's last visit to him to collect the drawings: "I never worked so hard in my life for Mr Barry for tomorrow I render all my designs for finishing his bell tower and it is beautiful".


{{Authority control}}
Design


]
London skyline with Big Ben and environs, including the London Eye, Portcullis House, Parliament Square, and St Margaret's Church
]
Completed in 1859, the tower is designed in Pugin's celebrated Gothic Revival style, and is 316 feet (96.3 m) high making it the third tallest clock tower in the UK. Its dials (at the centre) are 180 feet (54.9 m) above ground level. The tower's base is square, measuring 40 feet (12.2 m) on each side, resting on concrete foundations 12 feet (3.7 m) thick. It was constructed using bricks clad on the exterior with sand-coloured Anston limestone from South Yorkshire, topped by a spire covered in hundreds of cast-iron rooftiles. There is a spiral staircase with 290 stone steps up to the clock room, followed by 44 to reach the belfry, and an additional 59 to the top of the spire.
]

Above the belfry and Ayrton light are 52 shields decorated with national emblems of the four countries of the UK: the red and white rose of England's Tudor dynasty, the thistle of Scotland, shamrock of Northern Ireland, and leek of Wales. They also feature the pomegranate of Catherine of Aragon, first wife of the Tudor king Henry VIII; the portcullis, symbolising both Houses of Parliament; and fleurs-de-lis, a legacy from when English monarchs claimed to rule France.

A ventilation shaft running from ground level up to the belfry, which measures 16 feet (4.9 m) by 8 feet (2.4 m), was designed by David Boswell Reid, known as "the grandfather of air-conditioning". It was intended to draw cool, fresh air into the Palace of Westminster; in practice this did not work and the shaft was repurposed as a chimney, until around 1914. The 2017–2021 conservation works included the addition of a lift (or elevator) that was installed in the shaft.

Its foundations rest on a layer of gravel, below which is London clay. Owing to this soft ground, the tower leans slightly to the north-west by roughly 230 mm (9.1 in) over 55 m height, giving an inclination of approximately 1⁄240. This includes a planned maximum of 22 mm increased tilt due to tunnelling for the Jubilee line extension. In the 1990s, thousands of tons of concrete were pumped into the ground underneath the tower to stabilise it during construction of the Westminster section of the Jubilee line. It leans by about 500 mm (20 in) at the finial. Experts believe the tower's lean will not be a problem for another 4,000 to 10,000 years.

Name

The Palace of Westminster, Big Ben, and Westminster Bridge
Journalists during Queen Victoria's reign called it St Stephen's Tower. As members of Parliament originally sat at St Stephen's Hall, these journalists referred to anything related to the House of Commons as "news from St Stephens" (the Palace does contain a feature called St Stephen's Tower, located above the public entrance). On 2 June 2012, the House of Commons voted in support of a proposal to change the name from Clock Tower to Elizabeth Tower in tribute to Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom, in her diamond jubilee year, since the large west tower now known as Victoria Tower had been renamed in tribute to Queen Victoria on the occasion of her diamond jubilee. On 26 June 2012, the House of Commons confirmed that the name change could go ahead. David Cameron, then Prime Minister, officially announced the change of name on 12 September 2012. The change was marked by a naming ceremony in which John Bercow, then Speaker of the House of Commons, unveiled a plaque attached to the tower on the adjoining Speaker's Green.

Prison Room
Inside the tower is an oak-panelled Prison Room, which can only be accessed from the House of Commons, not via the tower entrance. It was last used in 1880 when atheist Charles Bradlaugh, newly elected Member of Parliament for Northampton, was imprisoned by the Serjeant at Arms after he protested against swearing a religious oath of allegiance to Queen Victoria. Officially, the Serjeant at Arms can still make arrests, as they have had the authority to do since 1415. The room, however, is currently occupied by the Petitions Committee, which oversees petitions submitted to Parliament.

Ayrton Light
A new feature was added in 1873 by Acton Smee Ayrton, then First Commissioner of Works and Public Buildings. The Ayrton Light is a lantern sited above the belfry and is lit whenever the House of Commons sits after dark. It can be seen from across London. Originally, it shone towards Buckingham Palace so Queen Victoria could look out of a window and see when the Commons were at work.

Clock
Dials

One dial as it looked in 2014
Augustus Pugin drew inspiration from Benjamin Lewis Vulliamy when he designed the dials. Each is made of cast iron sections bolted together. The whole frame is 22.5 feet (6.9 m) in diameter making them the third largest in the UK. They each contain 324 pieces of opalescent glass. Originally, the dials were backlit using gas lamps, at first only when Parliament was sitting, but they have routinely been illuminated from dusk until dawn since 1876. Electric bulbs were installed at the beginning of the 20th century. The ornate surrounds of the dials are gilded. At the base of each dial is the Latin inscription DOMINE SALVAM FAC REGINAM NOSTRAM VICTORIAM PRIMAM, which means "O Lord, keep safe our Queen Victoria the First". Unlike many Roman numeral clock dials, which show the "4" position as IIII, the Great Clock faces depict "4" as IV. The clock's gun metal hour hands and copper minute hands are 8.75 feet (2.7 m) and 14 feet (4.3 m) long respectively.

When completed, the frame and hands were Prussian blue, but were painted black in the 1930s to disguise the effects of air pollution. The original colour scheme was revived during the 2017–2021 conservation work. It was found that no less than six different colour schemes were used over the past 160 years. The Victorian glass was also removed and replaced with faithful reproductions made in Germany by glassmakers Glasfabrik Lamberts.

Movement

The rear of the clock face
The clock's movement is famous for its reliability. The designers were the lawyer and amateur horologist Edmund Beckett Denison, and George Airy, the Astronomer Royal. Construction was entrusted to clockmaker Edward John Dent; after his death in 1853 his stepson Frederick Dent completed the work, in 1854. As the tower was not completed until 1859, Denison had time to experiment: instead of using a deadbeat escapement and remontoire as originally designed, he invented a double three-legged gravity escapement, which provides the best separation between pendulum and clock mechanism, thus mitigating the effects of rain, wind and snow on the dials. Dent never patented his design and it quickly became the standard on all new high-quality tower clocks.

File:Winding the mechanism that powers Big Ben.webm
Winding the clock mechanism
On top of the pendulum is a small stack of old penny coins; these are to adjust the time of the clock. Adding a coin has the effect of minutely lifting the position of the pendulum's centre of mass, reducing the effective length of the pendulum rod and hence increasing the rate at which the pendulum swings. Adding or removing a penny will change the clock's speed by 0.4 seconds per day. It keeps time to within a few seconds per week. It is hand wound (taking about 1.5 hours) three times a week. The Keeper of the Clock is responsible for looking after the movement in addition to overseeing every aspect of maintenance around the Palace. A team of horologists are on call 24 hours a day to attend to the clock in the event of an emergency.

On 10 May 1941, a German bombing raid damaged two of the clock's dials and sections of the tower's stepped roof and destroyed the House of Commons chamber. Architect Sir Giles Gilbert Scott designed a new five-floor block. Two floors are occupied by the current chamber, which was used for the first time on 26 October 1950. The clock ran accurately and chimed throughout the Blitz.

Breakdowns and other incidents
19th century
Before 1878: The clock stopped for the first time in its history, "through a heavy fall of snow" on the hands of a clock face.

21 August 1877 – January 1878: The clock was stopped for three weeks to allow the tower and mechanism to be cleaned and repaired. The old escape wheel was replaced.

20th century
February 1900: The heavy build-up of snow on a clock face impeded the progress of the hour hand, causing the clock to stop for about eight hours.

1916: For two years during World War I, the bells were silenced and the clock faces were not illuminated at night to avoid guiding attacking German Zeppelins.

29 December 1927: Snow build-up on a clock face stopped the clock.

Winter 1928: Heavy snow stopped the clock for several hours.

2 April 1934: The clock stopped from 7:16 a.m. to 1:15 pm, when it was repaired.

23 September 1936: A painter painting the inside of the clock room placed a ladder against a shaft driving the hands, stopping the clock from 8:47 to 10 am.

1 September 1939: Although the bells continued to ring, the clock faces were not illuminated at night throughout World War II to avoid guiding bomber pilots during the Blitz.

10 May 1941: A German bombing raid damaged two of the clock's dials.

3–4 June 1941: The clock stopped from 10:13 p.m. until 10:13 the following morning, after a workman repairing air-raid damage to the clock face left a hammer too close to the mechanism.

25–26 January 1945: Extremely cold temperatures froze the rubber bushings on the quarter-bell hammers, preventing the chimes sounding from 9 p.m. on the 25th to 9 p.m. the following evening; the BBC broadcast the pips in the interval.

28 January 1947: The rubber bushings on the quarter bell hammers again froze before the clock sounded midnight, muting the chimes, though the problem was resolved by the morning.

12 August 1949: The clock slowed by four and a half minutes after a flock of starlings perched on the minute hand.

13 January 1955: The clock stopped at 3:24 a.m. due to drifts of snow forming on the north and east dials. Small electric heaters were placed just inside these two dials, and this measure has helped to reduce instances of freezing in recent years.

18 July 1955: The rope operating the striking hammer broke, silencing the clock from 10 a.m. to 5 pm.

New Year's Eve 1962: The clock slowed due to heavy snow and ice on the hands, causing the pendulum to detach from the clockwork, as it is designed to do in such circumstances, to avoid serious damage elsewhere in the mechanism – the pendulum continuing to swing freely. Thus, it chimed-in the 1963 new year nine minutes late.

30 January 1965: The bells were silenced during the funeral of statesman and former prime minister Winston Churchill.

9 January 1968: Snow buildup on the clock faces blocked the hands from moving, stopping the clock from 6:28 to 10:10 am.

On 5 August 1976 the air brake speed regulator of the chiming mechanism broke from torsional fatigue after more than 100 years of use, causing the fully wound 4-ton weight to spin the winding drum out of the movement, causing much damage. The Great Clock was shut down for a total of 26 days over nine months – it was reactivated on 9 May 1977. This was the longest break in operation since its construction. During this time BBC Radio 4 broadcast the pips instead. Although there were minor stoppages from 1977 to 2002, when maintenance of the clock was carried out by the old firm of clockmakers Thwaites & Reed, these were often repaired within the permitted two-hour downtime and not recorded as stoppages. Before 1970, maintenance was carried out by the original firm of Dents; since 2002, by parliamentary staff.

March 1986 and January 1987: The problem of the rubber bushings on the quarter bell chimes freezing recurred, muffling the chimes.

30 April 1997: The clock stopped 24 hours before the general election, and stopped again three weeks later.

21st century

Cleaning of the south clock face on 11 August 2007
27 May 2005: The clock stopped at 10:07 pm, possibly because of hot weather; temperatures in London had reached an unseasonable 31.8 °C (90 °F). It resumed, but stopped again at 10:20 pm, and remained still for about 90 minutes before resuming.

29 October 2005: The mechanism was stopped for about 33 hours to allow maintenance work on the clock and its chimes. It was the lengthiest maintenance shutdown in 22 years.

7:00 a.m on 5 June 2006: The clock tower's "Quarter Bells" were taken out of commission for four weeks as a bearing holding one of the quarter bells was worn and needed to be removed for repairs. During this period, BBC Radio 4 broadcast recordings of British bird song followed by the pips in place of the usual chimes.

11 August 2007: Start of 6-week stoppage for maintenance. Bearings in the clock's chime train and the "great bell" striker were replaced, for the first time since installation. During the maintenance the clock was driven by an electric motor. Once again, BBC Radio 4 broadcast the pips during this time. The intention was that the clock should run accurately for a further 200 years before major maintenance is again required; in fact the repairs sufficed for ten years.

17 April 2013: The bells were silenced as a mark of "profound dignity and deep respect" during the funeral of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

August 2015: Maintenance crews discovered the clock to be running seven seconds fast. They removed coins from its pendulum to correct the error, which caused it to run slow for a period.

21 August 2017: Start of an ongoing, 4-year silencing of the chimes during maintenance and repair work to the clock mechanism, and repairs and improvements to the clock tower building. During this time, dials, hands, and lights will be removed for restoration, with at least one dial—with hands driven by an electric motor—left intact, functioning, and visible at any given time. Plans also include installing a lift.

Bells
Great Bell

The second "Big Ben" (centre) and the Quarter Bells from The Illustrated News of the World, 4 December 1858

Big Ben
The main bell, officially known as the Great Bell but better known as Big Ben, is the largest bell in the tower and part of the Great Clock of Westminster. It sounds an E-natural.

The original bell was a 16 ton (16.3-tonne) hour bell, cast on 6 August 1856 in Stockton-on-Tees by John Warner & Sons. It is thought that the bell was originally to be called Victoria or Royal Victoria in honour of Queen Victoria, but that an MP suggested the bell's current

Revision as of 01:57, 26 October 2021

Volcano on the Australian subantarctic territory
Big Ben
Satellite image of the southern tip of Heard Island. Cape Arkona is seen on the left side of the image, with Lied Glacier just above and Gotley Glacier just below. Big Ben and Mawson Peak are seen at the lower right side of the image.
Highest point
Elevation2,745 m (9,006 ft)
Prominence2,745 m (9,006 ft)
ListingCountry high point
Ultra
Coordinates53°06′00″S 73°31′00″E / 53.10000°S 73.51667°E / -53.10000; 73.51667
Geography
Big Ben (Heard Island) is located in Indian OceanBig Ben (Heard Island)Location of Big Ben
LocationHeard Island, Australia
Topo mapRAN Heard Island 291
Geology
Rock ageQuaternary
Mountain typeStratovolcano
Last eruption2012 – ongoing (as of 11 June 2019)
Big Ben is the large massif to the bottom right (southeast) of this image of Heard Island, from NASA World Wind

Big Ben (previously known as Big Ben Peak, Old Ben Mountain, Emperor William Peak and Kaiser Wilhelm-Berg) is a volcanic massif that dominates the geography of Heard Island in the southern Indian Ocean. It is a stratovolcano with a diameter of about 25 km (16 mi). Its highest point is Mawson Peak, which is 2,745 m (9,006 ft) above sea level. Much of it is covered by ice, including 14 major glaciers which descend from Big Ben to the sea. Big Ben is the highest mountain in Australian Territory, except for those claimed in the Australian Antarctic Territory. A smaller volcanic headland, the Laurens Peninsula, extends about 10 km (6 mi) to the northwest, created by a separate volcano, Mount Dixon; its highest point is Anzac Peak, at 715 m (2,346 ft).

Volcanic activity

Volcanic activity at the cone has been known since 1881. An eruption occurred in 1993. Satellite images detected eruptions during 2000. On 2 February 2016, observations from Atlas Cove, 15 km (9 mi) northwest of Mawson Peak, showed plumes up to 1 km (3,300 ft) high over the volcano. Satellite images showed hotspots at various times from 2003 to 2008, and during September 2012. A further eruption was reported on 2 February 2016, and was recorded by scientists who happened to be in the area on an expedition. Big Ben does not endanger humans because Heard Island is uninhabited.

Big Ben is in a remote location, and without regular observation it is possible that eruptions have occurred at other times.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Big Ben". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2019-08-10.
  2. "Heard". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2019-08-10.
  3. Division, c=AU;o=Commonwealth of Australia;ou=Department of the Environment;ou=Australian Antarctic. "Frequently asked questions". heardisland.antarctica.gov.au. Retrieved 2016-05-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. Big Ben
  5. Heard Island Volcano - John Seach
  6. "Scientists film Big Ben sub-Antarctic volcano eruption". BBC News. Retrieved 2016-02-02.

External links

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