The Singapore Flyer is a 150 metre-tall observation wheel located on Marina Bay, overlooking Singapore’s city centre – and for the moment, it holds the title of the world’s largest observation wheel.

The next tallest observation wheel is the Star of Nanchang (sadly not-yet-built in Google Earth¹, but here’s a ground-level photo), which was the world’s tallest from when it was built in 2006, right up until the opening of the Singapore Flyer in February 2008. This is odd, because at 160 metres the Star of Nanchang should never have lost the title!²

It transpires that the Singapore Flyer has been built on top of a three-story building, taking it to a total height of 165 metres and into the record books. What a con!

Observation wheels seem to be de rigueur these days³ – just last weekend Melbourne got in on the act with the 120 m Southern Star, which we can see under construction on Australian Street View.

Elsewhere, Germany is busy building the Great Berlin Wheel (location), which at a planned 175 m would take the title from the Singapore Flyer.

Unless of course China gets there first, as the Beijing Great Wheel (location) is due to be completed first, and will rise to a staggering 208 metres.

All of which is great news for the Great Wheel Corporation, who will then be the owners of all three of the tallest observation wheels in the world.

There’s lots more at Wikipedia about the Singapore Flyer, the Star of Nanchang, the Southern Star, the Great Berlin Wheel, and the Beijing Great Wheel.

Thanks to John Andresen and Glenn Baker.

Recently opened in Doha, Qatar, is the spectacular Museum of Islamic Arts.

Designed by renowned architect I.M. Pei, this museum cost $300million to construct and is home to a large collection of priceless artifacts funded by the Qatar royal family. While construction was completed on schedule in 2006, delays to the interior displays meant the opening was put off until December 1, 2008.

After seeking inspiration at significant Islamic buildings around the world, Pei requested that the museum be located on a new artificial island in Doha Bay, to ensure that it would not be crowded or overshadowed by any future construction in this booming emirate.

Reviews are mixed, with the Independent positively gushing (follow the ‘more pictures’ link for excellent images), while the International Herald Tribune’s writers were of mixed opinion. One describes it as exquisite, while another was less thrilled, finding many flaws in the building and displays (more wonderful images in the multimedia section). Contract Magazine describes the architectural features and also has a good gallery.

Nestled in the bustling city of Osaka lie many kofun – keyhole shaped and mounded tombs or tumuli – the largest of which is Daisen-Kofun.

Daisen-Kofun is the resting place of Emperor Nintoku who ruled Japan in the early 5th century, with this kofun dated to 443AD. At 486m long and 305m wide, it is considerably larger than the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. Protected by 3 moats and rows of trees, it is a silent enclave invisible from nearby roads, as Street View shows.

The 740 officially-designated Royal kofun are strictly protected against most excavation, but past research has shown that Emperors and other royals were buried with mirrors, swords, clay pots and other goods. It is believed that the tombs were originally covered with stones, but time and nature have provided a covering of trees.

There are several other kofun visible in the area surrounding Daisen-Kofun.

Estimates of the total number of kofun range from 10,000 – 30,000, with construction taking place between the 3rd and 7th centuries AD. In addition to keyhole-shaped kofun, researchers have discovered many round and square tombs, as well as a few octagonal ones. Similar tombs are also found in Korea.

Clusters of kofun are visible in several locations throughout Japan, including Nara City which does have a reasonable Street View.

To learn more, I encourage you to read this detailed history of the Kofun period.

Thanks to Matt Van Pelt, Norimasa Hayashida, Nao and Tetsuo Tanno.

Tarbela Dam, found on the Indus River in Northern Pakistan, is the largest earth-filled dam in the world.

The dam was completed in 1976 as the result of a water-rights agreement between India and Pakistan. It is 143m high and almost 3km wide, for a total volume of 106million cubic metres of rocks and earth, making it one of the world’s largest man-made structures.

It holds back a reservoir almost 100km long, though the capacity of the lake has been reduced by silt deposits, just one of many problems encountered by the dam’s builders and operators.

The water is vital to irrigation for farms in the area and power stations at the dam provide a significant portion of Pakistan’s hydro-electric power (caution, vibrant text and background colour!)

Zooming in shows us that it also makes the perfect backdrop for a large religious pronouncement, with Arabic and English text from the Koran reading And HE hath made the rivers for service unto you.

Thanks to Rashid and Syed for pointing us to the first Google Sightseeing entry from Pakistan. This was also our first ‘large type’ from the Koran, though we have had advice to read the Bible and of course, many dams.

Yesterday, Google announced that they had added some extra cities to Street View, including Memphis, Tennessee; Birmingham, Alabama; and Charleston, South Carolina.

What’s even more interesting though, is that this update includes a lot of the places in-between places – highways coast-to-coast are now on Street View, and the coverage in the US has actually been doubled.

This means that some of Google Sightseeing’s previously posted sights, like The Devil’s Tower are now visible in Street View for the first time.

While the update includes places in Maine, West Virginia, North Dakota and South Dakota, a full list of the updates hasn’t yet been compiled as far as I can tell.¹

With all this new coverage, perhaps you’ll be the person to stumble across the next street fight, house on fire, or epic bike-related fail – so get submitting your street view discoveries now!