Shard London Bridge / The vertical city

Feast your eyes on these latest visualizations of The Shard (aka London Bridge Tower), a 1017ft (310m) skyscraper actually under construction. When finished in 2012, it will be the tallest building in the U.K, and one of the tallest in Europe.

Designed by the Renzo Piano Building Workshop, the 72-story tower has several twisting glass facets on its exterior, and inside, will have offices, apartments, restaurants and a 15-story observation gallery.

The Shard London Bridge, also known as London Bridge Tower, sits adjacent to London Bridge railway station and forms an integral part of the redevelopment of the area including Thameslink 2000 upgrades and Network Rail's project masterplan. The iconic tower will include 600,000ft² of office, hotel and luxury residential accommodation combined to form a 'vertical city'.

The mid-level public viewing galleries are approximately the same height as the London Eye and the top levels will provide views from a height previously unattainable both in the UK and Europe.

A ventilated double skin façade will considerably reduce heat gain to increase comfort levels and allow the maximum level of natural daylight to entre. Excess heat generated by the offices will be used to heat the hotels and apartments. Any additional excess will be dissipated naturally through a radiator at the top of the tower.