Southern Star Observation Wheel Southern Star Observation Wheel, Melbourne, Victoria; photo courtesy Southern Star A wheel with 21 air-conditioned cabins located at the Melbourne Docklands giving 360 degree panorama of Melbourne for as far as 40 kilometres, opened Saturday 20 December 2008.

Fred Maybury, chairman of the Southern Star Management Group, advised today (Friday, 30 January 2009) that the Southern Star observation wheel is currently not operating. "The excessive heat over the last few days has buckled some bracing members. The wheel has operated successfully and without issue since the 20 December 2008, however a decision has been made not to operate the wheel until a full inspection can be undertaken and rectification work carried out. The wheel will recommence once this issue is resolved," he said. May 12, 2009 Press release: Dismantling will begin in the next four weeks; including the temporary removal of the 21 cabins, followed by the disassembly and replacement of the outer structure, including rim and spoke sections. The columns, hub and wheel building will be retained. Sanoyas Hishino Meisho Corporation, the designers and manufacturers of the Southern Star, will carry out all works under the original warranty. Independent engineers will sign off on all procedures throughout the program. Rectification works are expected to take at least 12 months to complete Festivale notes that the contact form on the Southern Star Observation Wheel website listed below has NO PRIVACY DISCLAIMER and requires contact phone numbers. We do not recommend using your primary e-mail address, but rather a free address provided by, for example, yahoo or google in case the e-mail address is subsequently bombarded by spam. Open: Check website for opening hours. Ph 03 8688 9688 (+61 3 8688 9688) web site Southern Star Observation Wheel Docklands Drive, Melbourne Dockland VIC 3008 Tram No 48 or 30 from Flinders St

Pictorial Guide to Melbourne and Victoria Festivale Online Magazine Celebrate Everything! www.festivale.info ISSN 1328-8008 disclaimers | contact the editor | Festivale revision history Published in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia copyright © Festivale 2009 All rights reserved Filed: Jan-2009 Last updated: Last tested: 15-Jan-2009 Last Compiled: 29-Jan-2009 Entire site refreshed: Dec 2008-Feb 2009 | Site URL transferred: Jan 2005 (previously www.festivale.webcentral.com.au)