Gundam, a hero from a Japanese comic strip appeared in a park in Tokyo. It’s a giant robot 18 meters tall and built to life-size scale.
Impressive replica of a Gundam robot
A giant Gundam robot right in Tokyo. It’s a Japanese comic strip hero and it’s 18 meters tall, which would be its real size if this robot actually existed. The robot moves its head and looks as if it might start walking any minute. It’s an impressive and beautiful structure.
The surface is made of RFP (reinforced fiber plastic) and the inside is made of steel plates. It’s manufactured precisely to scale and it’s built well enough to bear weight. Steam vapor rises from the air ducts on its chest and the motors on its back, wrists and ankles... It also lights up at night and has a system to prevent it from getting struck by lightning.
The structure was built by the GREEN TOKYO Gundam Project, and it’s goal is to promote Tokyo’s environmental plan to create a more environmentally-friendly city. The building will become a cultural center. In part, the structure was inaugurated this season because the city of Tokyo is one of the finalists hoping to host the 2016 Olympics.
On the day it was inaugurated, there were huge queues and visitors stared at the giant robot in amazement. Its huge 1/1 scale size makes it look like a real robot. If you want to know what it’s like to be near the giant Gundam robot, you can get a sense of it by watching these panoramic images here andhere.(images in color will take a while to download)
The queue wasn’t just full of people waiting to see the Gundam robot up close, there were also people waiting to buy souvenirs of the event. Stands selling Gundam products drew massive crowds, who had to wait in line for 90 minutes before buying anything. There were also refreshment stands, it was almost like a party. Kids and adults of all ages enjoyed visiting Gundam. You can visit this structure until the end of August 2009.
An auction has also started that will allow the winner to record a video of the view from the robot’s shoulder. The stakes are up to 650,000 yen (5,000 Euro / 7,000 dollars).
The robot’s construction was also spectacular. You can see how it was put together in the following video:
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Impressive replica of a Gundam robot 
