While only a select few people had the privilege of attending the Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony, the public can now see the Olympic Cauldron in person after it was put on display in Ariake Park.
Residents of Japan’s capital — and their and dogs — have gathered to catch a glimpse of the flame because, with Tokyo under a state of emergency due to Covid-19, it’s one of the few ways they can experience these pandemic-era Olympics.
What most may not appreciate, however, is the thought behind the cauldron’s design.
The Japanese design house that built the cauldron, nendo, went through 85 drafts before landing on a final look.
To make the cauldron, nendo needed machines capable of applying a pressure of 3,500 tons as they had to mold thick aluminum plating into curved shapes. The final product weighs 2.7 metric tons.
The flame itself pays respect to the Fukushima nuclear disaster set off by the devastating earthquake and tsunami of 2011. The hydrogen that fuels the flame was produced in Fukushima prefecture. But because hydrogen has no color when it burns, designers added sodium carbonate to give the flame its vibrant gold hue.