What Is the Palm Island The Palm Island
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What Is the Palm Island? The Palm Island is a man-made island on the coast of Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. Why do you think it is called ‘The Palm Island’? Why do you think they chose to use this shape? Did you know? The Palm Island Jumeirah can be seen from space.
Why Was It Built? Dubai was becoming very popular with visitors. His Highness, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, realised they did not have enough coastline. They wanted a greater beach area and hotels for visitors.
What Materials Were Used? The easiest way to build the island, would have been to use steel and concrete, like other constructions in the UAE. However, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum wanted it to blend in with its surroundings, so it is made completely from sand rock.
How Was It Built? The first stage was to build a breakwater. Building an island out at sea had many challenges, like the effect of extreme weather on the island. The following things had to be considered: • powerful storms • erosion from the sea • the height of waves crashing down on the shore • raising sea levels To build the breakwater, they first built up the seafloor using sand. Then, they dumped rubble over it. After that, large rocks were placed on top. breakwater A breakwater would protect the island from extreme weather.
How Was It Built? Next, it was time to build the actual island. They used sand to make the island it was constructed in the shape of a palm. Island Desert sand was not the correct type of sand to use to make the island, so they had to scoop up sand from the seabed using dredgers. The island stretches 5. 5 km into the Arabian Gulf. Did you know? They needed 94 million cubic metres of sand to create the island.
How Did It Affect the Environment? Designers only used natural materials, to lessen the harmful effects on the wildlife in the area. Marine life was in fact supported by the breakwater that was built, with many fish and marine creatures making the rocks their home. Did you know? People can go diving to see the underwater sea life. Some say it is the largest artificial reef in the world!
