Lighting Up the Town: Moscow to Use Neon Lights to Mark UN's 70th Birthday

A whole array of buildings in central Moscow will be lit up on Saturday evening in honor of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the United Nations.

On October 24, a total of 48 buildings in the center of the Russian capital Moscow will be backlit in blue, the color of the United Nations flag; the goal is to pay tribute to the 70th anniversary of the formation of the organization, according to the Moscow Fuel and Energy Department.

"Neon lights will be seen on ten buildings on Prospect Mira, eight buildings on Novy Arbat Street, 28 buildings on Tverskaya Street and two buildings on Pushkin Square and Strastnoy Boulevard", the department said.

In addition, a sign reading 'UN —70 Years' will be illuminated on the media facades of buildings on Novy Arbat Street.

These facades include a series of huge displays composed of 600 LED light strips mounted on the outer surface of three buildings on Novy Arbat Street.

Buildings on Novy Arbat Street, Moscow

© Sputnik / Iliya Pitalev

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The displays are designed to display text, animation, graphics, and video on major Russian, Moscow and international holidays.

The UN-themed backlighting will glow between 5:19 p.m. and midnight, Moscow time.

Meanwhile, users of social networks, including Twitter, have reported that the backlighting had already been turned on.

Новый Арбат сегодня сияет неоном в честь ООН pic.twitter.com/r9vG7QPZjF

— Бочкарев Борис (@Bochkarev_B) 23 октября 2015

 

One of tweets said on Friday evening that "Novy Arbat is shining in neon lights today in honor of the UN."

On October 24, 1945, the Charter of the United Nations came into force, a document that was signed by 50 countries. Currently, the UN includes a total of 193 member states.