Tall & Urban News

The tuned mass damper in the Taipei 101 skyscraper moved 15 centimeters due to an earthquake early Thursday, 8 August, according to the building management.

The magnitude-6 earthquake hit northeastern Taiwan at 5:28 am, measuring an intensity of 4 in Taipei, on Taiwan’s intensity scale of 1 to 7.

At that time, the damper—a device utilized to reduce the amplitude of seismic and wind vibrations in the high-rise building—moved by 15 centimeters, the second-biggest movement ever recorded during a temblor, and the fourth-biggest movement ever recorded in the building’s history.

According to the Taipei 101 authorities, the damper recorded its biggest-ever movement due to an earthquake on April 18, 2019, when it moved 20 centimeters as a result of a magnitude 6.1 earthquake that had its epicenter off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan, where it registered an intensity of 7, the highest level on Taiwan’s intensity scale. The intensity recorded in New Taipei was 5, and in Taipei, 4.

Before that, the damper moved 100 centimeters due to strong winds brought by Typhoon Soudelor on August 8, 2015, the biggest movement in the building’s history.

The second-biggest movement ever registered in its history was on July 13, 2013, when it moved 70 centimeters as a result of Typhoon Soulik, which caused widespread damage in Taiwan.

The Taipei 101 damper, with a diameter reaching 5.5 meters (18 feet) and a weight of 660 metric tons, is the world’s largest and heaviest wind damper. It reduces the building’s movement by up to 40 percent.

For more on this story, go to The China Post.