Can YOU guess the famous landmarks? Take the test based on the incredible map that charts 2.75 billion structures in 3D

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Scientists have created an incredible new interactive tool that maps every building in the world in 3D

Called the GlobalBuildingAtlas, the free web viewer charts the location and size of 2.75 billion buildings globally in incredible detail. 

It was created by researchers from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) in Germany using a vast trove of satellite data.

The experts combined nearly 800,000 satellite images with an AI algorithm to predict the size of missing buildings based on the heights of the neighbours.

Now, the Daily Mail has taken seven famous landmarks from the map, accompanied by brief descriptions.  

So can you work out what they are? 

Remember that different shades of blue represent different heights – so particularly tall buildings look extra dark. 

Once you've guessed, scroll down to the bottom for the answers! 

Building 1: Now a World Heritage Site, it is one of the country's most popular tourist attractions today, attracting more than three million visitors per year

BUILDING 1 

Let's start with a fairly easy one, which is by far the oldest building on this list.

This famous historic castle stands 90 feet high on the bank of one of the world's most famous rivers. 

Nearly 1,000 years old, it took labourers and masons around 20 years to complete the monument, which has been used as a prison, a zoo and a treasury. 

Now a World Heritage Site, it is one of the country's most popular tourist attractions today, attracting more than three million visitors per year. 

BUILDING 2

This distinctive building is a Danish design, although its location is thousands of miles away from anywhere in Europe. 

The award-winning designer from Copenhagen found inspiration in monumental Mayan and Aztec architecture. 

Building 2: This UNESCO World Heritage Site took 14 years to construct at a cost of $102 million

The European countries with the most buildings

  1. Finland: 3,967 cubic metres
  2. Estonia: 2,689 cubic metres
  3. Sweden, 2,159 cubic metres
  4. Denmark: 1,996 cubic metres
  5. Latvia: 1,666 cubic metres
  6. Lithuania: 1,602 cubic metres
  7. Belgium: 1,263 cubic metres

  8. Netherlands: 1,250 cubic metres
  9. Ireland: 1,228 cubic metres
  10. Austria: 1,215 cubic metres

Building volume per capita

Regarded as a masterpiece of 20th-century architecture, this UNESCO World Heritage Site took 14 years to construct at a cost of $102 million. 

More than 10.9 million people visit the building every year, which is surrounded by waters known to be infested with sharks. 

A performance space, it has hosted performances by Sammy Davis Jnr, Ella Fitzgerald, Brian Wilson, Philip Glass, Thin Lizzy and Tame Impala. 

BUILDING 3

This 18th-century monument, about 85 feet high, was intended as a grand entrance to this city, symbolising peace and power. 

In terms of architectural style it has been described as Greek revival, inspired by the monumental gateway at the entrance to the Acropolis in Athens. 

Constructed from sandstone, it features twelve large columns that form five passageways, with a quadriga – a chariot with four horses – on top. 

Official sources describe it as this city's most famous landmark' with over two hundred years of history' and a must-see for all visitors'. 

Building 3: This 18th-century monument about 85 feet high was intended as a grand entrance to this city, symbolising peace and power

Building 4: The iconic landmark (in dark blue) was constructed in the early 1960s to symbolise humanity's space age aspirations

BUILDING 4

Casting a shadow over one of the country's most vibrant cities is this 600-foot tower, which cost around $4.5 million to build. 

Frequently featured in films and TV shows, the iconic landmark was constructed in the early 1960s to symbolise humanity's space age aspirations. 

It was built on the site of an old fire station and is made to withstand winds at speeds of 200 miles per hour. 

An estimated 69 million people visited this tower between 1962 and 2024, making it the number one tourist attraction in its geographic region. 

BUILDING 5

GlobalBuildingAtlas renders this next building as a slender, slug-shaped blemish, which doesn't do its true majesty justice. 

In fact, visitors to this city remark on its otherworldly appearance, often compared to a spaceship or a 'a floating garden in the sky'. 

Building 5: GlobalBuildingAtlas renders this building as a slender, slug-shaped blemish, which doesn't do its true majesty justice

Envisioned by Israeli-Canadian architect Moshe Safdie, it was designed and developed to fit harmoniously with the concept of a contemporary garden city.  

It comprises three hotel towers, a museum, a theatre with more than 2,100 seats, a shopping mall and a wide selection of restaurants and bars. 

BUILDING 6

A breathtaking skyscraper, this sixth landmark with a colossal height and distinctive Y-shaped footprint has to be seen to be believed.  

At 2,716 feet (828 metres), it is three times as tall as the Eiffel Tower and almost twice as tall as the Empire State Building. 

Construction of this mighty tower – envisaged by American architect Adrian Smith – began in 2004 and was completed in 2010 at a cost of $1.5 billion. 

Since opening, it has caught the eye of Hollywood producers, having featured in numerous films, including Independence Day: Resurgence (2016). 

Movie fans may also have spotted it in Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011), which saw Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt scale the building. 

Building 6: At 2,716 feet (828 metres), this tower is three times as tall as the Eiffel Tower and almost twice as tall as the Empire State Building

Building 7: This interlinked pair of 88-storey supertall skyscrapers - standing at 1,483 feet - were the tallest buildings in the world from 1996 to 2004

BUILDING 7 

Lastly, this handsome set of twin skyscrapers – a major draw of tourists to this part of Southeast Asia – stand at an impressive 1,483 feet (451 metres). 

They were the first buildings outside the United States to claim the title of the world's tallest (two decades ago they were surpassed by the Taipei 101 building in Taiwan). 

The plan for each tower is identical – an eight-lobed circular structure that contains 88 stories of occupiable space and a pyramid-shaped pinnacle surmounted by a slender steel spire. 

They were designed by Argentine-American architect César Pelli, who drew inspiration from the geometric patterns of Islamic art. 

So how did you fare? The answers  

  1. Tower of London, England 
  2. Sydney Opera House, Australia 
  3. Brandenburg Gate, Berlin, Germany
  4. Space Needle, Seattle, USA 
  5. Marina Bay Sands, Singapore
  6. Burj Khalifa, Dubai, UAE 
  7. Petronas Towers, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
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