The Roanoke Star
Daytime
After I shot a complete photo set of the Roanoke Star while Mill Mountain was in fog, I went back down the mountain, and did some other stuff. I stashed the car in a public parking garage, and visited downtown, where I photographed the Roanoke City Market, and also a fire alarm street box. After I did these two shoots, I went over to Valley View Mall and Tanglewood Mall, where I killed some time at Valley View, and then went over to Tanglewood Mall where I had lunch, and then played some video games at the arcade. After I finished at the arcade, I noticed some detail in the clouds that were still hanging over Roanoke. That could only mean one thing – the fog had lifted, much to my delight. So… with that realization, I was excited. That meant I could go back to the star, to do a second shoot, this time in clear conditions.
From a distance, the star is easy to miss when it’s not lit up.
Now that the fog is gone, the city of Roanoke is clearly visible, from this view leaning against the front of the star’s support structure.
The most visible portion of Roanoke is downtown, where the skyscrapers live. A recurring theme throughout the entire week was First Union and Wachovia, which had recently merged at the time these photographs were made. At every location I visited, there was a Wachovia building or a First Union building prominently showing somewhere. In Roanoke, the tallest building was signed as First Union, designed kind of like a miniature Chrysler Building. The second-tallest building in the vicinity, the nearby black building, also contained First Union signage.
Off in another direction, a church is visible, among other things.
In front of the star sits a historical marker containing facts and figures. The star was erected in 1949 as a symbol of the progressive spirit of Roanoke, the Star City of the South. I think some of the figures that they give for the star are absolutely amazing. The star itself weighs 10,000 pounds, the steel support structure weighs 66,000 pounds, the concrete base weighs 500,000 pounds, and this thing eats 17,500 watts of power. Additionally, it’s visible from the air for 60 miles.
Now that the fog is gone, you can really see the star in all of its 10,000 pounds.
The star’s support structure has various aerials coming off of the top of it at various points. It is unknown what these are used for.
Meanwhile, the star comes to a point in each of its three “rings”.
Here, you can see the three “rings” of the star up close, revealing the glass tubing where the light comes from.
Up the support structure, interesting things are to be found.
For maintenance purposes, there’s a ladder going behind the middle of the star up to the top.
The star connects directly to horizontal bars, which then connect to the support structure.
Meanwhile, trees and shrubs nearby make for a very picturesque scene.
At the bottom of the star, extending 6½ feet into the ground, are concrete footpads, keeping the star firmly in place. It is unknown what the metal twine leading from the base to the ground is there for.
The footpads are hidden from view for the most part by trees and shrubs.
Aha… we found it. The source of the power.
This is the place where power is received, and then distributed.
And for this purpose, cables come off of the star going to various places.
How much electricity are we using right now?
Remember – if you’re climbing on the structure, you’re going to jail!
SO many beams holding this star up – quite amazing, indeed.
Behind the star, there are lots and lots of trees. With the trees, you don’t see the star until you’re right in front of it. Additionally, this blocks any other light coming from behind the star when it’s illuminated at night, such as from the parking lot behind it, which have the potential to spoil the view.
From here, you can see the aerials on the top of the structure, as well as the point that the structure ultimately comes to.
Taller than the trees, the star stands triumphantly.
This is an excellent example of the scale of the star and supporting structure. The parking lot for the star area is directly behind the star, and you can compare the star with the average-sized cars parked here.