On Location - The Atom, Brussels, Belgium

The Atomium was built as the main pavilion and icon of the 1958 Brussels World's Fair (Expo '58). In the 1950s, faith in scientific progress was great, and a structure depicting atoms was chosen to highlight humanity's advance in science, including nuclear physics, which Belgium itself was an avid practitioner ever since the Belgian Congo's uranium became the dominant source of material used for nuclear fission, including that used for the world's first nuclear weapons. With the Atomium, Belgium wanted to highlight and promote the post-war ideal to peacefully apply atomic research and other advancements in technology in order to improve lives and serve the betterment of mankind. The Atomium's nine 18-metre-diameter (59 ft) stainless steel clad spheres depict nine iron atoms in the shape of the body-centred cubic unit cell that could for example represent α-iron (ferrite) crystal, magnified 165 billion times