Twenty-five years ago, on September 11, 2001, the world stood still. The attack on New York's Twin Towers completely changed society as it had been known up to that point.
At the southern tip of the city, the Twin Towers — two 110-story buildings — dominated the New York skyline. There, on the morning of September 11, 2001, a chain of attacks began that within a few hours would permanently alter the city's skyline and reshape the world. At 8:46 a.m., an American Airlines plane crashed into the World Trade Center's North Tower. Seventeen minutes later, a second aircraft struck the South Tower.
By 10:30 a.m., both Twin Towers had collapsed, devastating Lower Manhattan.
So, on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the deadliest terrorist attack in U.S. history, the city held a striking, large-scale tribute to the victims.
New York's sky lit up in the early hours of Thursday morning to honor those killed in the attacks: a free drone light show titled "2,977 Lights Over New York Harbor," made up of 2,977 coordinated drones in a single massive display — one light for every life lost that day.
The installation was produced by creative director Addison Mehr and drone-show company Sky Elements, in collaboration with 9/11 family members, survivors and first responders. It was presented as a sponsored project of the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), honoring the 2,977 people who lost their lives in the attacks.
The aerial formation traced, at architectural scale, the outlines of the World Trade Center's iconic towers alongside the traditional blue beams of the "Tribute in Light," with each individual point of light meant to stand in for one of the victims.
The image remained visible over the New York sky for several minutes before dispersing back into thousands of independent lights.