ATLANTApix: The Leaning Tower of Power

Georgia Power Headquarters

The 24-story, black glass, corporate headquarters building for Georgia Power in downtown Atlanta is often called "The Leaning Tower of Power." The catalyst of this playful moniker was one of the building's unique energy-saving features. On the building's southern facade, each floor protrudes, or cantilevers, farther outward by 15 inches than the floor above it.

The energy savings come from when in summer the sun is high in the sky, each extension partially shades the windows below them and in winter, when the sun is lower in the southern sky, it shines directly into the windows which helps to heat the space.

Additionally, an experimental solar energy project was also part of the building's original design (rooftop) when it was built in 1980, but was unfortunately, that program was discontinued not too many years after it was launched due to excessive cost.

A one-of-a-kind building in the Atlanta skyline, she's often used as a landmark and she's definitely a building that every local immediately recognizes.

ATLANTApix and ATLANTAvidz of the tourATLANTA blog features a daily photo or video relative to Atlanta. Come back tomorrow for a new one!