A large crowd gathered around the new crystal ball that will drop at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve at the end of the year. Classic Sinatra Christmas music played in the background while shoppers squeezed together to get a close up look at the sparkling icon.
“The New Year’s Eve Ball, like Times Square, is an exciting blend of technology and tradition” said Tim Tompkins, President of the Times Square Alliance in a press release. “In its own way it reflects the spirit of change and renewal that is in the heart of the New Year’s Eve celebration for billions of people around the globe.”
This latest edition of the New Year’s ball is a significant improvement over the one used for the last seven years. It features 168 more crystal triangle panels than the old one. Each triangle is cut with a radiating sunburst pattern which is, for the first time, on both sides. The double cutting of the crystals maximizes light refraction inside the triangles.
This year’s ball will also show a sharp increase in brightness thanks to new solid state bulb technology with 9,576 LED bulbs inside compared to the old ball’s 600 incandescent and halogen bulbs. Also, it can be controlled from a remote location by computer. The new ball will be capable of producing more than 16 million colors and billions of patterns according to the Time Square Alliance’s website.
The entire New Year’s Eve Ball will be able to be lit with about the same amount of electricity as ten toasters.
