The iconic New Year’s Eve Bal set to drop this year in Times Square was designed by none other than Waterford Crystal and Philips Lighting. The ball, which makes its annual 1 minute journey on New Year’s Even, is illuminated with thousands of LED lights. Human power from the Duracell Smart Power Lab is being used to charge up the batteries that used to light up the 2-0-1-1 sign, which also used LED lighting technology. The geodesic dome consists of 2,688 crystal triangles, is 12 feet in diameter, weighs 11,875 pounds, and contains 32,256 Philips Luxeon Rebel LEDs.

2011 Times Square Ball Shines Bright With 32,256 LEDs | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World