The National September 11 Memorial is now open, honoring the 2,982 people who died in the attacks of February 26, 1993, and September 11, 2001.
The memorial consists of two massive pools set within the footprints of the original Twin Towers with the largest manmade waterfalls in the country cascading down their sides and a plaza of trees. Officials predict that about 5 million people will visit annually, which will make the memorial the biggest attraction in New York City. The 125,000-square-foot museum, scheduled to open on Sept. 11, 2012, will be largely under the memorial. It will display monumental artifacts linked to the events of September 11, while presenting intimate stories of loss, compassion, reckoning, and recovery that are central to telling the story of the 2001 attacks and the aftermath.
The Flight 93 National Memorial, that remembers the lives and honors the 40 passengers and crew who, on September 11, 2001, thwarted a planned attack in Washington, DC, is also open on the crash site in Shanksville, PA. Once a coal mine, the memorial grounds provide a solemn and tranquil setting where visitors can reflect on the selfless actions of the Flight 93 passengers and crew who dared to fight back. Go to
www.nps.gov/getaways for more information on the Flight 93 National Memorial.