The lighting of the Olympic cauldron

At the close of the ceremony, watched in the stadium by the 10,000 athletes and 80,000 spectators, the flame was extinguished in dramatic fashion. Each nation will receive one of the cauldron's 204 petals.





The lighting of the Olympic cauldron at last night's opening ceremony was, if nothing else, wonderfully unique.
The giant flame's design was so sophisticated the studio where it was crafted looked more like James Bond's gadget workshop, its architect revealed today.
Thomas Heatherwick said he was pleasantly surprised when the idea to have 204 separate petals come together to form one giant flame got the go-ahead from a range of officials including Prime minister David Cameron and London 2012 chairman Lord Coe.
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Complex: The design of the Olympic cauldron was so sophisticated it was made in a workshop that look more akin to James Bond's gadget workshop

Spectacular: It may be far smaller and lighter than previous cauldrons, bu there can be no denying the impact the flame had at the opening ceremony

Going green: Each of the 204 petals is fuelled by natural gas, which means energy consumption can be reduced significantly and the flame will still burn brightly

Measuring just 8.5 metres high and weighing 16 tonnes, it is far smaller and lighter than ones from previous events. The one lit in Beijing four years ago weighed a staggering 300 tonnes.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2180217/Burning-green-Unique-design-Olympic-cauldron-help-make-carbon-neutral.html#ixzz23Qo50YzQ